Azimuth: The Elden Throne

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Day 5, 6, and 7…

With the moon at its peak, the first week of Resko's event had finally ended.

Everyone tried their hardest and things looked bright for the Village.

But when people thought things would be peaceful for a while... Their peace was disrupted.

On the very last day not long before the day started, after missing for 2 whole days in the forest, causing massive distress in the entire Village, Tina reappeared… With a bang.

/Inside Tina's house… A few minutes after she reappeared/

"What the fuck happened to you, old shirt?!" Barme exclaimed as he looked at the bloodied Tina

"..."

/Gulp.../

Looking at her state, Dale couldn't help but gulp down a little...

She was currently carrying the broken-down carcass of something Dale couldn't quite recognize, her entire right arm covered in blood, and it wasn't that clear whose it belonged to...

Her hair was a mess, and her clothes were in tatters… Tina looked to have survived war as she was covered with improvised bandages and even, stitches, the more brutal it may sound...

But despite all of this, the most significant change and the very thing people couldn't take their eyes from were her looks…

She looked 40 years younger, her skin having rejuvenated.

Her eyes looked clear, her hair had color had returned, her chest... That was enough information.

Previously, Tina looked like an 80-year-old woman. Now, she could pass as Dale's mom or aunt...

/Fwoosh!/

She pulled a sharp bone from her pocket and pointed it at Barme's neck, saying:

"What did you say? I didn't quite hear it…"

"D-Don't make me say it, I'll get sick..."

/Sheen.../

Her bone knife seemed to shine momentarily, making Barme gulp as his facial expression grew green and blue as many emotions passed through his head... And stomach.

"Y-Young Miss Tina…" Barme said as his eyelids twitched and his stomach gurgled

/Sheath/

Tina smiled gently, but it looked very scary with the blood and dirt on her face, especially to Barme that momentarily saw his own reflection in the bone blade.

"Here… A wet towel." Dale said as he returned from the kitchen

'Barme sure has balls of steel... Guess he forged them as he grew older...'

'As for me, it's clear that the best way to make her pleased is to... Adapt accordingly to her changes.'

'Given how much effort she must've placed to become like this, I can tell she means business and will now enforce everyone on her new self.'

"Thank you, dear." She replied as she took the towel to wipe her face

"..."

'Still... What a fucking way to start the day...' Dale thought to himself as he let out a sigh

A few minutes ago, he had been the first to notice her when he was walking near the gates...

Dale had just woken up, and he went to the gates to meet with two guards that he meet when he first joined Resko.

They wanted to talk with him and apologize, and they did.

So without much trouble, they talked and made peace, not that there was anything to be angry about in the first place.

They had been rude, yes, but after so many days, Dale's anger was completely non-existent.

And instead of getting angry at two Villagers that could give him Quests.

But it was when he turned his back to go back that he noticed something strange in the distance...

At first, he thought something was wrong, his eyesight was still readjusting because he had just woken up...

And indeed, Dale had decided to sleep inside the Capsule, why? Because it was better than sleeping in real life... And also inside the game where his bed was terrible...

Of course, this wasn't exactly sustainable, staying inside the Capsule for multiple days on end wasn't feasible, even for Dale whose body was already stronger than the norm...

He could go on for days connected with the Pod, but he still needed to get out to do his ordinary bodily needs...

Still, if it was for the sake of efficiency, he could mix a lifestyle from staying in the pod and leaving only to do his necessities for long enough until the game stabilized, giving him enough time to adjust and be ahead of everyone else as he would be inside for longer...

When he saw Tina, he approached her, thinking she was some sort of Villager that had been seriously hurt due to all of the blood, but in the end, he was in for a surprise, especially when he saw the horrific carcass she was carrying…

The poorest of all were the two guards that had to deal with her, the two sods tried to stop her as they didn't recognize her, only to be beaten up when she lost her patience trying to convince them of who she was...

Even now, Dale had to process the situation properly, and to be honest, at the end of the day, he gave up and simply decided to treat it as just another 'normal' occurrence…

Tina was now younger, and scarier, looking more active than ever, she had that scary aunt look in her eyes… Albeit, when she talked with Dale, she at least smiled gently.

Looks like he had managed to stay on her good side, just like how he was in real life with his grandmother who seemed to love him and his brother more than she did his father...

"Thank you for the towel Dale..."

"But... I'll have to ask you to leave for now, and bring this DUNCE with you before I kick him out, worse, if he spits out one more profanity I may as well cut his tongue out."

/Shudders.../

Barme shuddered slightly, he could feel it, she wasn't lying.

Not that she ever did, even before, her sassy personality wasn't exactly a secret...

"As you can see, I need some time to make myself more presentable and rest."

"I'm really tired after 2 days of extreme workout, as I'm a tad too grown up for that."

"Of course, I'll visit little Yumi after this to get all patched up so you don't need to worry for me."

But Dale shook his head and said

"Don't worry, I know you're tough."

"I'll just warn the others that you're okay, they're extremely worried after all so make sure to give them a visit when you feel better…"

"You shouldn't have left a letter behind like that, got us all worked up trying to look for you." He said with a small smile as he remembered the Quest he received, in fact, it had been completed the moment he saw Tina in the gates, giving him quite the XP boost, enough to give him another Level!

It was rather free, so much so that he felt a bit scared...

Was there perhaps a possibility Tina wouldn't have returned? Or perhaps, she wouldn't be like this if he had searched for her immediately...

Regardless, it was enough to make him pensive.

"Sorry dear, sometimes, I need to do it like this else those boys won't leave me be."

"Come back tomorrow, we'll start then." She said with a smile as she turned around

"Start what?" Dale asked confused

"Your training of course."

"T-Training?" Dale said as sweat started to fall from his forehead

"Yes, and don't worry about your exercises with Testros, my training won't conflict with his, in fact, our training aligns in purpose."

"I won't accept a no for an answer." She said with a kind smile

[DING]

[Unique Quest, Introduction to Dancing Shadows has activated]

[Requirements:

After a day has passed, visit Tina Eino at her house and start your training

Description:

After many bouts with death, Tina has finally taken hold of her life goals and has decided to once again try and do something she thought she left behind in the past...

Follow her and learn what she has to teach so you may add her knowledge to your arsenal, as it'll likely prove very useful in your journey!

]

"I'll do it, thank you for teaching me." Dale said earnestly with a smile

'No matter what, I won't refuse her... There's no need to anyway.'

'This must be it then, her Main Questline.'

"That's great to hear dear, I'll also get myself ready for tomorrow, drop by whenever you have time, I won't leave my tiny house, my ankles need to cool a bit."

"See you later..."

'I'll take whatever the Elders are willing to teach me, and apart from Testros and Misgurd, there aren't any warriors available to teach me.'

'Although… Misgurd was more focused on himself than on me recently, he must feel pressurized to improve as well, so he doesn't have any time to spar anymore.'

'Edimund is strong, or supposedly so.'

'But when I asked him for tutelage, he said he didn't have anything to teach me, even when I asked for a spar…'

'I don't know why, but I'm confident the problem is not me, but himself…'

'Albeit, I don't really know why he has such an aversion to fighting.'

'Of the remaining Elders, only Ophelia knows how to fight, but she can barely run anymore, much less pull a bow.'

'Her injury truly brought an end to her career as a Hunter and Ranger.'

'She taught me a lot, including the basics of holding a bow, but that's all she can do currently.'

'Honestly speaking, if I could fix her injuries, then I imagine her troubles would end, but that is nearly impossible, even from Yumi's standpoint.'

'She has been seeking ways to help her, but so far, apart from some unrealistic potion recipes, there haven't been any clues to aid her condition.'

'The main problem is the time since when she was hurt, it's been soo long...'

"..."

'... I don't know what Tina can teach me, but even before, she was the strongest.'

'And now? She may have surpassed Testros again, even after his enlightenment.'

'Perhaps he never did surpass her.'

'Still, ever since the day we brought back the books, his progress can only be described as monstrous...'

'Reading a book in the morning, then using what he learned at night, by the time the next day rolled in, he would have some level of proficiency over what he was trying to learn.'

'He says that this is all thanks to the massive foundation he built himself over decades of self-training and reflection, and he isn't wrong.'

'The books, instead of teaching him new things from scratch are more of answering and clarifying questions he held with him for many decades, it'll take a while until he reaches the point where everything is new and confusing.'

'His growth speed is a good representation of how quickly each Villager has been progressing during this event.'

'Even the children are improving in their own way… I can't be left behind.'

With a nod, Dale turned around and left the house, with Barme behind him.

It wouldn't take long for this news to spread to the other Villagers, and even to the players, who at this point in time, had already started to figure out what was happening in the Village.

There was an entire forum dedicated to that after all, with even a page dedicated to Dale, a game wiki if you will.

Slowly piecing together the fragments from the conversations of the NPCs, they unveil the "lore" of the Village and the world, something Dale found quite amusing and informative to visit every time he had some time.

But not all players were satisfied with that, some wanted more…

They tried to break into the Villager's houses, or even inside the library or other hidden areas…

Some did manage to do so, but they didn't last long, especially the poor idiots that tried to break into the library and some other areas of the Mercenary Guild… Those were shot down the quickest.

Aside from those idiots, most players were focused on doing their Rank Up Quests...

A Week had passed, and the players that joined a week ago were now allowed to complete their Rank Quest inside the Mercenary Guild, finally going from trainees to Novice Mercenaries.

With this and their Reputation, they would finally be able to start adventuring outside, while getting the 'good' Quests and commissions from the Guild.

Especially the players who completed Dale's Quests outside, they were the happiest as their Reputation was high and their Levels too, and now, they could finally 'graduate' from his Quests and start adventuring for real.

After many attempts, the players came up with a guide to effectively farm his Quests.

The name of this guide was: How to be a Hardcore Farmer…

But that was for another day.

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Notes

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