NOVEL NEXT Chapter 197: Talking Further
After a successful experiment which resulted in not only her mana increasing but also her curse affinity increasing as well, Hazel was satisfied with her current progress and placed everything back in her storage bracelet.
With her business on the roof done, Hazel stood up and made her way over to the door to head back down. Just as she reached for the handle, a holographic panel materialized in front of her. She froze for a moment and stared at the screen to see what it was.
[Astrid Skogr: I'm finished with them...meet me on the third floor so we can talk. Also, try and contact Zoe, Chegyaeyi, and the elves. They need to listen to what I have to say.]
"Geez, talk about ominous," Hazel muttered.
It seemed that whatever Astrid needed to tell them was very important. Especially since she wanted to let Zoe in on this conversation as well.
"Guess I'll be making a bit of a detour before meeting up with her, then."
Given a new objective, Hazel opened the door and calmly walked down the stairs. It was time to gather Zoe and Chegyaeyi to see what news Astrid had in store for them.
...
It didn't take long for Hazel to locate Zoe, Chegyaeyi, Tine, and Runa and bring them to the third floor of the Jetport. Thankfully, they were both located outside, aiding the other players in cleaning up the aftermath of the battle. Aside from them, Hazel surprisingly brought back another player as well.
It was Mara Grisel. The black knight noticed that Hazel was trying to take Zoe somewhere and decided to tag along. Hazel was hesitant to let her join, but decided to let Astrid decide on what to do and told her about it through the Chat room. To Hazel's surprise, her dark elf partner agreed, so Mara was now part of the group.
Making it to the third floor, Hazel and the others were greeted by Astrid, who stood in the center of the third floor before them. However, she didn't appear to be alone. Sitting behind her in a row were Dolk and the other dark elves. Taking a closer look, Hazel noticed that all of them were covered in bruises and wounds on their faces. She didn't need to ask where they got those from, as she spared a glance at Astrid with a knowing look on her face.
"You certainly did a number of them," Hazel noted.
"I would've done worse, but I need them to be conscious for our conversation."
"These bastards are joining our little meeting?" Mara questioned while pointing at Dolk and his companions. "What for?"
"Because they have information that you guys will find...let's say interesting."
Hazel furrowed her brows curiously. "I don't like the sound of that."
Astrid shrugged. "Well, like it or not, you guys need to know this information."
"And why is that?" Zoe asked, sounding a bit concerned.
"Because what they know, or at least what Dolk knows," She explained while looking at the dark elf rogue. "will surprise you. A lot, I might add."
After hearing this, Hazel and the others knew then and there that there was no backing out now. And they soon found out that what they learned...was certainly surprising.
...
Hazel pinched the bridge of her nose while expelling a heavy sigh. "So, you mean to tell me that the High Elves might've known about the existence of the System before its appearance?"
Astrid nodded, confirming her question. "That's what Dolk said, and I can't help but believe his words to be true."
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Continuing with their conversation, Hazel and the other players just learned that the High Elves might have been aware of the system's descent long before it suddenly appeared out of nowhere. And all of them were very...skeptical and surprised to discover such a thing.
"And how can we be sure he's telling the truth?" Mara pointed out with a scoff. "That bastard isn't exactly someone you can stake your life on, can you?"
Astrid scowled at the black knight in response to that comment, but Mara simply glared back, standing her ground. Before some kind of conflict could transpire, Astrid closed her eyes and sighed deeply.
"I understand your suspicions. I also hate to admit this, but I do believe he is telling the truth."
"Could you at least explain why?" Mara urged, crossing her arms.
"Sadly, I agree with Grisel," Zoe suddenly chimed in. "There's no way we can trust the words of someone who betrayed their tribe. Especially with such absurd information like this."
Tine and Runa nodded to Zoe's statement, clearly taking their side in the matter.
Hazel and Chegyaeyi looked over at one another, seeing which side they were going to choose. Obviously, Hazel was taking Astrid's side, since she was her partner, but even she couldn't help but doubt the words of a known traitor and liar. Even if her partner trusted him.
Astrid closed her eyes and took a moment to think. Once she was done, she continued. "Although he's a liar and a bastard, the fear in his voice when he told me this was genuine. Even if that's not enough to trust him, at least trust me for a moment."
Mara and Zoe narrowed their gaze while staring at Astrid as if they were attempting to sense any foul play. A few seconds passed before they lowered their heads.
"Alright, we'll believe your words," Zoe surrendered.
"For now, anyway," Mara grunted. "But if what you said is true, then this is very big news."
Chegyaeyi nodded. "Indeed. If we are to believe this, that would mean that the High Elves have been preparing for the system for who knows how long."
"Not only that," Tine chimed in. "But it's possible that the civil war happening in the great forest of Meir could be because of what they knew as well."
Hazel didn't think about that. There was a chance that the High Elves could be starting a civil war due to their knowledge of the system. Maybe they were trying to take over Meir because they knew that their homeland would be in chaos when the system appeared...and attempted to try and take control once they returned from their tutorial dungeon.
Still, that was too big of a leap for such a conclusion. They needed more information regarding what the High Elves were up to...and the only way to do that was to head to the Great Forest of Meir.
"For now," Hazel spoke up. "I believe we should trust Astrid. If the High Elves did know about the system's existence before its descent, then that means they are planning something big. The civil war happening in Meir could be only the beginning of something bigger. Plus, there's something else we might've overlooked regarding this information..."
"What do you mean?" Mara raised an eyebrow, looking curious.
"Think about it. Since the High Elves could have knowledge regarding the system before anyone else, doesn't that mean that-?"
"Someone told them about it..." Astrid finished, her eyes widening in shock.
Yes, the only way for anyone to know about the system before its arrival would have meant that someone informed them about it. And if that were the case, there was only one culprit behind the leak.
"T-then doesn't that mean..." Zoe muttered in fear.
Hazel nodded her head, acknowledging her fears. "Yeah, it means someone from one of the other worlds tipped off the High Elves. Someone likely with a lot of power and authority gifted to them by the very system all of us rely on."
Hazel and everyone here weren't the only people on this or even within this grand universe. There were other worlds aside from their own. All of them have been involved with the system for a lot longer. Much longer, in fact.
Which meant any one of those worlds could have told the High Elves of the System's arrival. And Hazel had no clue which one it was. She did know this, though. Whichever planet decided to try and screw over her world...they were in for a rude awakening. Because she planned to make them pay for even attempting something like that.
"This is getting way out of hand," Mara groaned. "If one of the other worlds was involved in this, then we're way in over our heads."
"Then do you expect us to simply sit back and take what they dish out?" Zoe questioned.
"Like hell. I'm the last person to say something like that. But shouldn't we at least acknowledge that this situation isn't something that we can easily deal with?"
"Sure we can," Hazel suddenly announced, catching everyone's attention. "Just because our opponent is another planet doesn't mean we don't stand a chance against them."
"While I like your enthusiasm," Mara noted. "We're not facing monsters or other players from our world. We're confronting players who have known this system for a long time and are much stronger than us. And who knows how high their levels are? They could be level five hundred for all we know."
Mara was right about that. Their opponents could very well be over a hundred levels above them. But that wasn't going to stop Hazel from fighting against them.
No matter their authority or power...she was going to protect her home and ruin whatever plans those otherworlders had in store for her world and people.