Reign of the Hunters
Page 203Chapter 203 Ye Ci’s Troubles
Ye Ci could feel the black, cursed aura around her thickening.
The black aura surrounding her was so dark that it painted the entire dungeon black.
Despite achieving First Blood in a 100-player dungeon, there was not a single piece of Hunter equipment among the loot dropped by the BOSS. Yes, there was not a single one.
Not. A. Single. One.
There were nine Hunters in the party including Ye Ci, and all of them were dumbfounded. Ideal Height 1.7m let out a sigh as the other Hunters began drawing circles while crouching in a corner and cursed Ye Ci for bringing them bad luck.
Ye Ci stood behind them and cleared her throat. She then chuckled as she attempted to console her fellow Hunters, “Uhh… You know… The future is bright and our path ahead is beautiful. We will have more skill books and equipment in the coming days. I swear that I’ll give the priority to you guys when we get any Hunter equipment. How does that sound?”
Naturally Cute let out a sigh, “The problem is… They might not even drop…”
The seven other Hunters remained silent, but they nodded in agreement to Naturally Cute’s words. Ye Ci could feel the pressure. I did not ask for this… I did not ask for this…
Let Go Of That Girl walked up to Ye Ci and waved the pair of gauntlets he had just obtained in front of her, “Gongzi, I think you can drink some of those Balm of Blessings of yours. I’ve heard that you got quite a lot of them during the Dragon Dance Competition.”
Fruit Jelly joined in on the fun as well, “Yup! Gongzi, we really feel sorry for your bad luck! We’ve all worked hard for the loots! You know how bad we will feel for you, if your bad luck continues?”
Ye Ci turned around and snorted when she saw the brand new staff held by Fruit Jelly, “Judging from your expression, I highly doubt that.”
Fruit Jelly chuckled, ignoring Ye Ci’s darkened expression, “Seriously, you should go to the Royal Monastery often and talk to the Archbishop. Go have a dip in the holy water fountain as well! I’m sure your luck will improve as well!”
Ye Ci’s expression darkened further.
She stared at Fruit Jelly with a blank expression and spoke calmly, “Do you want me to assign the looting permission to myself during our next expedition?”
The entire party was stunned silent. They stared at Ye Ci with mouth agape. This improved Ye Ci’s mood greatly.
That’ll teach them for making fun of me!
Ye Ci did not stay long in the dungeon. She returned to Red Lake City after giving instructions to the guild officers to gather in the Guild Conference Room after distributing the loot.
Ol’ Four’s mood was sour after his death in the dungeon. With her stock of roasted meat running out, Ye Ci bought a huge load of meat from one of the taverns as a treat for him before heading up to the nearest mailbox.
Ye Ci’s mailbox was always clean, as opening mails was one of her favourite pastimes. It made her feel wanted. There was only one mail in her mailbox. It was from Unbridled Willow.
There was only a short message in the mail, “Kindly accept this down payment.” with 55 million gold coins attached. She accepted the money and headed straight to her guild encampment.
She entered the Guild Conference Room after reaching her destination.. The officers had already arrived, with faces glowing from excitement.. They were still reminiscing the moment when they defeated the BOSS, anddid not even notice Ye Ci’s presence, even after she entered and took a seat. Ye Ci had to clear her throat to gain their attention.
“Heh, Gongzi, what we want is celebration, not a darn meeting!” Let Go Of That Girl’s face was flushing red. His excitement was apparent.
The guild admins and several officers of the first squadron, as well as some officers from the second squadron attended the meeting. Purity Essence was amongst them.
“We will of course celebrate. But before that, I have something to announce.” said Ye Ci as she set a sack of gold coins onto the table.
Everybody present held their breath as they laid eyes upon the sack of coins. From the size of the sack, there should be dozens of millions of coins inside… The officers were stunned into silence.
Even Bai Mo who has mentally prepared himself almost fainted when he saw the sack of coins. There was indeed several million gold coins stored within ‘Upwards Ho!’s warehouse, but it was achieved only through the efforts of the guild members. It was not as awe-inspiring as the huge sum of money that has suddenly appeared in front of them.
“W-what the hell is this?” asked Icy Cold Little Hands and Little Icy Cold hands in unison. As husband and wife, they became full time gamers after joining ‘Upwards Ho!’. They were able to earn a stable income of 80,000 in terms of real world cash as administrators of the guild. They were not wealthy, but could lead a fulfilling life with what they had. The huge sum of money came as a shock to them.
The members of ‘Upwards Ho!’ were not poor, but most of them were a far cry away from being wealthy. They were all from medium class families that earned an average salary. They were able to benefit much after joining ‘Upwards Ho!’. This vastly increased their loyalty to the guild.
“Money.” Ye Ci’s answer was direct and simple.
Fruit Jelly visibly gulped, “We all know it’s money. But what sort of money?”
“In-game currency.” Ye Ci intentionally took the question by its literal meaning and let out a smile, “Lots and lots of in-game currency.”
“How much?” even Ideal Height 1.7m was unable to keep her calm.
“55 million.”
The players gathered in the conference room almost coughed up blood.
In the end, Bai Mo had to step up to save the day. He grabbed Ye Ci’s wrist and started begging, “Say – stop torturing us good folks. Hurry! Tell us the truth! We’re all poor people! If you keep this up, I think most of us will die from a heart attack.!”
Everyone else agreed with Bai Mo’s words.
“Before we entered the dungeon, somebody expressed his wish to buy the dungeon-clearing guide from us at the price of 15 million in real world currency. This is the down payment.” Ye Ci’s answer was brief. She had no intention of revealing the identity of their customer.
“15 million… That’ll be 75 million if you convert it into gold coins… And the transfer fees….” Timely Rain began his calculation, “Holy shit! This guy’s f*cking rich! I guess 15 million is just numbers to him.”
“To be frank, it’s numbers for us as well.” Pickled Pepper Phoenix Claw pursed her lips. This sum of money meant nothing to the wealthy, which is why it was just a bunch of insignificant numbers. To the poor, it meant a whole world to them. To them, it was a significantly large sum of numbers.
The officers began discussing with each other.
“This money will be used to pay the salary for the members who took part in achieving the First Clear today. Timely Rain, give it out when we have our celebration later.” Ye Ci handed the money to Timely Rain.
“Alright.”
“I’m curious, why is that person willing to pay you such a large sum of money even before you entered the dungeon? Won’t he be worried that you might not clear the dungeon?” Purity Essence stared at Ye Ci. He was excited after seeing the large sum of money. Even if he was not part of the first squadron, he was deeply impressed when Ye Ci was able to achieve First Blood and First Five while securing such a huge sum of money.
Ye Ci smiled at Purity Essence, “First of all, it’s not just my effort alone. Everybody in ‘Upwards Ho!’ did their part. You should use the word ‘us’. And secondly, ” she narrowed her eyes, letting out a overbearing aura, “I am Gongzi You.”
There’s probably nobody else in this world that could have so much confidence and yet sound so charismatic. thought Purity Essence to himself.
“Oh, by the way…” Ye Ci suddenly remembered something important, “It’s time for me to collect the balance. I’ll only give the person 3 days. We’ll only wait for 3 days before we continue our expedition into Castle Ruins. I hope that players from the first squadron could have some interaction with the second squadron and show them the ropes. We’ll begin the exploration of Castle Ruins in 3 days. I hope you people will be able to clear this dungeon and secure spots in the First Five.
I sure expect the dungeon clearance guide to l fetch us a good price after this.”
Fruit Jelly laughed, “Gongzi, has anybody told you before that you’re a money grubber?”
“You’re that person.” Ye Ci smiled. She then left the conference room after a small talk with the officers.
Ye Ci sent Unbridled Willow a message as she stood at the heart of Red Lake City, “Meet me at the largest tavern in Oasis City with the rest of the money.
The largest tavern in Oasis City was the Crippled Warrior Tavern. Unbridled Willow headed straight for the tavern, even though he was in the dungeon. He left for Oasis City after a brief explanation to Zero Arsenic and headed straight to the Crippled Warrior Tavern.
Ye Ci arrived at Oasis City shortly after. She headed straight towards Unbridled Willow’s location after confirming his whereabouts.
Unbridled Willow poured Ye Ci some wine right after she took her seat, but Ye Ci would have none of it. She waved her hand at Unbridled Willow, “You can save the wine, let’s get straight to business.”
“Alright.” Unbridled Willow nodded. He was looking forward to end this deal quickly.
“Here’s the video.” Ye Ci placed the video into the trading tab. She was not in a hurry at all to confirm the trade. Unbridled Willow, on the other hand, was very excited as he confirmed the trade. “The money.” said Ye Ci calmly.
“Ahhh… Look at me, I’ve forgotten all about it!” he then placed 50 million gold coins into the trading tab, “This is the rest of the money. I paid the transaction tax.”
After confirming the amount of gold coins that was being traded, Ye Ci proceeded with the trade.
The business was done.
Unbridled Willow immediately began watching the video. Ye Ci waited for him patiently. She had to give him some time to confirm the content of the video. She ordered a meal from the NPC in their private compartment and began dining as Unbridled Willow studied the video.
Unbridled Willow was totally immersed in the intense battles shown by the video. Even with the lack of sound, the footages made his blood boil. He started with the intention of watching parts of the video, but he was unable to stop, and finally raised his head when the video was over.
It took ‘Upwards Ho!’ an hour to defeat the BOSS, which meant that the video lasted for a full hour. Guessing that Unbridled Willow was almost at the end of the video, Ye Ci spoke up, “So, are you satisfied with this?”
Unbridled Willow was reminded of Ye Ci’s presence in the room. He closed the video and nodded apologetically at Ye Ci, “Ah, sorry, I was too immersed in the video. I’ve even forgotten that you’re here.”
“Ah, it’s alright. I’ve busied myself with something.” Ye Ci gestured at the empty plate in front of her, indicating that she have had a fine meal.
Unbridled Willow let out a relieved sigh.
“I’m giving you three days.” Ye Ci spoke up after she was sure that Unbridled Willow was satisfied with the video.
“What do you mean by three days?” Unbridled Willow was stunned. He did not get the meaning behind Ye Ci’s words.
Ye Ci pursed her lips. It seems that Unbridled Willow thinks that his worries have ended after receiving the video. “Three days from now, which will be 72 hours. This is the time I’ll give you to defeat the fifth BOSS.”
“I don’t think this has anything to do with you.” Unbridled Willow finally understood Ye Ci’s words. He let out a cold laugh. This Gongzi You likes sticking her nose into somebody else’s business. Since she has given me the video, what makes her think that my progress is any of her concern?
Noting that Unbridled Willow has not fully grasped the meaning behind her words, Ye Ci narrowed her eyes and smiled mockingly.
“Indeed, I have no say over when you start taking on the BOSS. However, as your collaborator, I would like to remind you that some things should be done sooner even if I do not know about the nature of your conflict with Thousand Sunsets.” noticing that an impatient Unbridled Willow was about to cut her off, Ye Ci raised her hand and continued to speak, “I’m not done yet. I hope you can listen to what I have to say.”
Unbridled Willow remained silent, and continued to listen to Ye Ci’s words.
“I would also like to remind you that Wolf Pack is also stuck at the fifth BOSS. They’re unable to get past the third stage of the fight. Tang Dynasty and World Conqueror are preparing for the fifth BOSS. There will be a lot of changes after three days. These guilds might be able to secure First Five. Also…” Ye Ci paused and narrowed her eyes. A ghost of a smile formed on her lips.
Unbridled Willow’s heart sank. He asked anxiously, “What else?”
“Also… Do you think that only the first squadron of ‘Upwards Ho!’ is going to explore the Castle Ruins?” Ye Ci smiled.
“What do you mean?”
“What I mean is that…” Ye Ci chuckled, “My guild will use this three precious days to rest. When the three days are over, our second squadron will begin the exploration of the Castle Ruins.”
“You!” Unbridled Willow’s eyes bulged. He was lost for words.
Ye Ci sneered coldly, “I don’t know if you don’t know how the gaming world works, or that you’re simply childish.” and she stood up, “I am giving you a special treatment. If I’m doing business with any other guild, I would not give them a head start. Not even a single day.”
Unbridled Willow realized that he was indeed still new to the gaming world. Gongzi You was correct. If he was dealing with anybody else, they might demand a higher price from him, and might not even give him three days.
He took in a deep breath. Despite his unwillingness to accept such a fact, Unbridled Willow thanked Ye Ci sincerely, “If that’s the case, I would like to thank you.”
“Well, allow me to congratulate you in advance. I’m sure that you’ll be able to achieve your goals.” Ye Ci stood up and left without casting a backwards glance at Unbridled Willow, “I did not run into you today. Of course, I’m sure you don’t want to meet me as well.”
“Of course.” Unbridled Willow understood Ye Ci’s words.
Before Ye Ci could open the door, Unbridled Willow called out to her, “Gongzi You, wait up!”
“What is it?” Ye Ci turned around and looked at Unbridled Willow. She did not know why she was called out by him. There was no need for her to stay any longer.
Ye Ci was not used to such sincerity, “What do you have in mind?”
“If Thousand Sunsets does not exist, would you still be doing business with me?”
As expected, this person is suspicious of my motives. However, at this point, Ye Ci’s motives did not matter anymore. Ye Ci smiled with all her sincerity, “Of course.” and was met with Unbridled Willow’s surprised expression, which was something that she has expected, “I like the price you offered. To be honest, I don’t really care who am I dealing is, as long as the price is right.” Ye Ci answered slowly.
“Thousand Sunsets as well?”
“He’s an exception.” Ye Ci pursed her lips, “I’ll never help out someone who has wronged me in the past. Besides, Thousand Sunsets is not the only wealthy player in the Eastern Continent.”
It was a good answer. At least for Unbridled Willow, it was a good answer. He would never have to fear that this deal today would bring misfortune upon him in the future. That’s right, the deal with Gongzi You today was nothing out of the ordinary. He offered a decent price, and she was satisfied with the price.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving.” Ye Ci turned around, opened the door, and left.
As she walked down the stairs, Ye Ci could hear the dull thud of her own footsteps. She felt a sudden emptiness in her heart. Thousand Sunsets, our past grievances is coming to an end. Our one year of grudge is about to end soon.
Although I was unable to take you out with my own hands, I think it will be better for you to lose at the hands of Unbridled Willow. The situation will be far worse for you, and I, will be happier.
As for Dong Yin and Yi Cang… Ye Ci suddenly remembered the two names. She had grew so unfamiliar to those two. It seems that her past memories of them were fading away.
I have no intention to bring harm to your families, but too bad, you’ll have to pay the price for the choice you’ve made.
“Have you settled matters over there? Come back to the guild encampment. We have wine!” said Bai Mo through the voice chat.
“I don’t drink.”
“I think you need it today.”
Bai Mo is correct. thought Ye Ci. She needed to drink. Without wine, she will be unable to fill the emptiness in her heart.
This day was not a day to be lonely. It was not a day to remain solitary.
The guild encampment was packed full of people. Decorative lightings lit up the place, a bright contrast to the darkening sky. The multicolored lights were do dazzling yet so pretty at the same time.
Ye Ci stood at the gates of the guild encampment, staring at the crowd and the dazzling lights, taking in the bustling scene in front of her. For some reason, her cold and rational heart was beating excitedly.
“Vice leader, you’re here!” a loud voice pierced through her daze and pulled her back to reality. It was someone she did not even know. Judging from the person’s equipment, she did not have a high level, and had inferior equipment. However, joy was written all over the person’s face.
“Yes, I’m back.” Ye Ci could not help but mirror the player’s smile. It was just too rude to not return the smile.
“Hurry up! Guild leader and the rest have reserved the best wine and were waiting for your return! They say that they’ll only begin drinking the wine when you’re back!” the player’s smile was like the most precious treasure in this world. She grabbed hold of Ye Ci’s wrist, and dragged her towards the Grand Hall.
Ye Ci allowed herself to be dragged along by the girl towards the building occupied by the most players. She did not know who the girl was, but she somehow felt a sense of familiarity with the girl. But why?
“You, are you happy today?” trailing behind the girl, and watching her hair bobbing up and down , the question escaped Ye Ci’s lips.
“What? Are you talking to me vice leader?” the girl could faintly hear Ye Ci’s question. She stopped right in her tracks and turned around, studying Ye Ci with a face full of curiosity.
Ye Ci was momentarily stunned. She regained her composure and repeated the question, “Are you happy?”
“Of course! Of course I’m happy! This is the happiest day I’ve ever had since I joined Upwards Ho!” the girl’s jovial expression was a testimony of her heart’s feelings.
“Why”? Ye Ci was unable to comprehend her words. What’s there to be happy about?
“Why?” the girl looked at Ye Ci, “Our guild has secured First Clear for Castle Ruins today! How could I not be happy? Are you not happy vice leader?”
A fuzzy feeling washed over Ye Ci. What am I thinking? What should I think about this? “But you did not take part in the dungeon exploration team, why are you so happy?” asked Ye Ci absentmindedly.
The question was a rather offensive one. However, the girl did not mind. She tilted her head, appearing to be deep in thought. The girl the let out a smile, “Even if I did not join the dungeon exploration, I’m still part of guild! ‘Upwards Ho!’ was able to achieve a First Clear, and I’m a member of ‘Upwards Ho!’. How lucky I am to be able to join this guild! Even if I’m not able to join the first and second squadron today due to my low level, I believe that I will be able to do so one day, and secure my very own First Clear!”
The girl continued when she noticed Ye Ci’s dumbfounded expression, “I’m happy to be part of ‘Upwards Ho!’. This is my home!”
Ye Ci snapped out of her daze. She surveyed her surroundings slowly. She might not be able to name every single one of them, but they still felt so familiar to her. This was all because of the fact that they were members of ‘Upwards Ho!’, and she, was a member of ‘Upwards Ho!’ as well.
She suddenly came to a realization. She did not even know when it began, but at some point, people has stopped referring to her as Gongzi You, and instead began referring to her as Gongzi You of ‘Upwards Ho!’. She has never realised such a change, but once the realisation struck, she felt a sliver of warmth.
“Let’s go vice leader, what are you doing?” the girl did not wait for Ye Ci to clear her thoughts. She continued dragging Ye Ci towards the Grand Hall while giggling loudly, “Guild leader, look! Look who I found?”
“Heh, I thought you’d never show up.” Bai Mo pulled Ye Ci along, “Hurry, I’ve taken out the best wine we have in the guild.
It was a Château Blaignan vintage wine. Ye Ci was stunned. The wine could not be purchased in the game, and could only be acquired through a lengthy quest. She asked with a voice full of amazement, “How did you get this?”
“We got it from a quest!” Bai Mo laughed, “25 of us worked our asses off to complete the quest during your trip to Fate HQ.” Bai Mo patted the barrel containing the win, “We got it just for this occasion. Such foresight.”
“Why did you not wait for me?”
“You have things of your own to worry about, and so do we.” Timely Rain laughed. He walked up to Bai Mo and said with a smile, “Hurry, can we drink this think already? I’ve been waiting to have a taste for days! Tell you what, I wouldn’t even have fought so hard just now if not for this barrel of wine!”
The players in the Grand Hall broke out in laughter.
Ye Ci felt a sudden pang of sadness. She barely did anything for the guild, but her members were always so tolerant of her actions. She has always been a lone wolf. As she left her footprints in various maps, going on adventures as she pleased, she had never thought that there were a lot of things that she could have done for the guild.
Bai Mo opened up the casket of wine, and the players immediately swarmed over him, scrambling to have a taste of the wine. Ye Ci stood at the back of the crowd, staring silently at the players. They were all unfamiliar faces. She felt so distant from them. It was as if she did not belong to that place.
Ye Ci clutched at the cup tightly. She did not speak a single word, and instead stared at Bai Mo’s pretty face. She was distracted.
Bai Mo gripped on her shoulder, lifted his cup, and spoke up loudly, “We’ve managed to achieve First Clear on Castle Ruins! The world shall remember our names!”
“Yes! The world shall remember our names!” the players in the Grand Hall lifted their cups as well. Their faces were flushed red. It was a beautiful scene.
“Who are we?”
“Upwards Ho!!!!”
The players drank and chattered merrily with each other. The air was full of joy. Ye Ci felt as if she was looking at a painting. She could admire it, she could be deeply entranced by it, by she could never be part of it.
It was an awful feeling. A feeling that was troubling Ye Ci.
The ‘Upwards Ho!’ players were enjoying the celebration. They were not only gathering in the Grand Hall. The party has spread to all corners of the guild encampment. There were a lot of fun and games in the encampment, and the players were thoroughly enjoying themselves.
The bustling Grand Hall began quieting down.
Bai Mo grabbed hold of Ye Ci’s hand and dragged her along.
“Where to?” Ye Ci stumbled as she followed behind Bai Mo.
“Stargazing.”
“We’ve done that before. Don’t tell me that I have to do it with you all the time!” Ye Ci’s eyebrows furrowed as she started grumbling.
“I don’t have the rights to watch the sunrise with you, so I can only stargaze with you.” Bai Mo turned around, saw Ye Ci’s depressed face and turned back again.
Ye Ci stared at his back as she followed him closely.
They ended up sitting on the wall of the encampment.
“I realised that you do not like scenes like that.”
“What scene?” Ye Ci looked up into the night sky. There was no moon that was prettier than the moon in the map of their encampment.. It was so shiny and round. It was as if everything is pure under the moonlight.
“A scene where everybody is celebrating, where they are enjoying themselves.”
“No.” Ye Ci stared at the moon, and offered a dishonest answer.
Bai Mo knew that she was keeping her real feelings to herself, but he did not expose her. He patted Ye Ci on the head, “Why are you unhappy?”
“I’m not.” Ye Ci blinked. She was trying very hard to convince herself that she was happy. I’m happy, aren’t I?
“Drink this.” Bai Mo handed her a bottle of wine, “It’s not as rare as the wine just now, but I’ve did an entire month’s worth of repeatable quest to get it. I was going to keep it for myself, but since you’re so pitiful, I’ll let you have a sip.”
“Me? Pitiful?” Ye Ci glared at Bai Mo. She hated to be described with that word. Was she pitiful? No! She was not pitiful at all, and she needed no sympathy. Not even from Bai Mo.
“Is that so? Your expression suggested otherwise.”
“Oi…” Ye Ci raised her eyebrows. It was apparent that she was starting to get angry.
“If I’m wrong, why do you even need to be angry?” Bai Mo carressed Ye Ci’s brows, “Little Ci, I’m Bai Mo. I’m not Fleeting Time, nor am I Thousand Sunsets. I’m not your enemy, nor am I your nemesis, and I’m definitely somebody who is plotting against you. I’m just Bai Mo.”
Ye Ci opened her mouth to retort, but was found herself unable to speak, as if she was choking on sand. She relaxed her brows, and snatched the bottle away from Bai Mo. Pulling away the cork, Ye Ci sipped in a mouthful of wine. The rich aftertaste was something to be remembered. She basked in the taste of the wine and spoke up after a long time, “Cousin, have I always been alone?”
Bai Mo was momentarily stunned before he slowly realised the meaning of Ye Ci’s words. He smiled and pulled her into an embrace, “Each and every one of us is alone when we were born. We will be alone when we die. From the beginning of our lives until our demise, we are indeed alone.”
Sadness gripped Ye Ci’s hard.
She could remember the scene in her past life, when she was at the top floor of the Fate HQ. That night was just like tonight. The moon was bright, the night was quiet, and… She was alone.
“But, before we end our journey in life, we have spent many years on this earth. We will meet many people in life. They could be friends, they could be enemies, and they could be strangers. However, they are always keeping us company, just like how we are company to them.”
Ye Ci blinked. Has her level of intelligence dropped? Why can’t she understand any of Bai Mo’s words?
“Bai Mo, somebody told me that she was happy. Even if she did not take part in the First Clear, she was happy. When I asked her the reason behind her happiness, she said that it was because Upwards Ho! has achieved First Clear, and she’s part of Upwards Ho!. That was why she was happy and proud. But, Bai Mo, why do I not feel any of that?” it was apparent that Ye Ci was troubled, “Why do I feel like I don’t belong to the team? Tell me, Bai Mo! Do I really belong to this team? Or… Or that… I’ve always been alone?”
Hiya minna-san! This awesome chapter is brought to you by the one and only, the most awesomtacular translator, JIMMI!!! Yay!!! Why the late night post you ask? (It’s 10pm GMT+8 so yeah!) Cuz I’m bored! BORED! So uhh… I’ll just yanno come bother you guys with my random messages in the translator’s note mwahahahaha…
Etvo: THIS FLUFF SAYS YO!!
So uhh.. Hope y’all enjoyed the novel! And uhh… *whispers* Don’t forget that we’ve fixed our Sponsor button… *cough cough* Yanno… In case anybody wants to give Jimmi some motivation. *winks*
Teaser next page! First in the comment type First Blood!
Desu Vult!