The players were distraught at what the second announcement implied. Whoever the mage was, he'd clearly angered someone, or something, he shouldn't have. There was constant speculation on forums around the world about what was going on. Very few people got close to the truth.
The Old Legends across Satisfy felt cold sweat run down their backs. The demons of hell and the gods of Satisfy were no exception, even if they reacted less than the others. Every one of them had more or less the same reaction.
"That monstrosity has awoken."
The howl that followed it didn't help.
[S.A. Group]
Meanwhile, the creators of Satisfy were laughing at how the player base and the NPCs were reacting.
They still planned to bring the Golem Kingdom out into the open much later, as a future episode. That didn't stop Daz from acting now. It only meant he couldn't do it openly.
The funny part was that it was all a coincidence. Grid had provoked Braham into attacking him, to get his attention. Braham's reckless use of golems was what set Daz off.
The S.A. Group saw Daz as a great actor, who pulled off being an NPC remarkably well. Under normal circumstances, they'd be surprised or upset that events were moving faster than planned. Ever since Daz entered the picture, though, nothing surprised them anymore. Especially not now that he'd raised his class to Legendary and 'regained' some of his 'past memories'.
In practice, that meant Morpheus had sent him a brief summary of his NPC character's past in a notification window, and he could ask about it any time he liked.
[Daz's POV]
I won't pretend the anger was an act. It wasn't. Not at first.
But somewhere between my son climbing the podium on his hands and my daughter yelling at him for matching her, the anger settled into something I could carry. And once it did, I realized the whole world was watching to see what the Golem King would do. So I kept the mask on, in more ways than one.
On the inside, I'll admit, part of me was brimming with excitement.
Not only had my class reached legendary. This wasn't even the highest rating I could reach. From what I could tell, the highest was Myth.
Getting there would be extremely difficult, though. Maybe impossible for a few years of dedicated play.
[Requirement for Myth rating: create 14 legendary golems with legendary classes (2/14), and 2 mythic golems with mythic classes (0/2). The types and classes of the mythic golems are unknown.]
It had originally been 15 legendary golems. Juliet came along before I reached this rating, so it dropped to 14. Torva and Fenrir already counted. Twelve to go. As for the mythic ones, their types and classes were all question marks to me. I could only guess.
I put those thoughts aside and got ready to make a short appearance, since the fight between Grid's guild and Braham's golems was coming to an end.
I also noticed that Grid's younger sister and her friend had received epic classes, so I added them as blueprints on the way.
Then I headed out with an army of golems in tow.
[Third Person POV]
The people of the Eternal Kingdom were congratulating their new hero, Grid, and his guild, when everyone felt something was off.
On the battlefield, the remains of many of the golems began to put themselves back together.
Players nearby started breaking into a cold sweat, thinking they'd have to fight all over again. But once about a quarter of the golems had reassembled, they didn't fight. They took a knee and bowed toward an open field to the west.
Players and NPCs alike were mystified, until some of the players remembered the second announcement after the attack. Before they could tell anyone, a new announcement appeared.
[The Golem King has decided to pay a brief visit to the Eternal Kingdom and collect the remains of the golems on the battlefield. The King's anger was felt across the world. Beware of drawing his ire, for even higher beings of power fear the Golem King.]
If the Eternal Kingdom's players had been sweating before, now they were sweating bullets and slowly backing away from the battlefield.
Grid and his guild were about to do the same, when four figures moved faster than their eyes could follow and stopped them.
The first was a gigantic wolf, who took human form as he landed behind the guild members. His fur was silver, with two tails, and deep blue eyes. In human form he was tan and powerfully built.
The guild members who'd taken Princess Juliet's quest recognized him a moment later. The wolf they remembered had been black, with red eyes. But the size was the same, and the way he stood over the girl beside him was exactly the same.
The girl was about three-quarters his size and had the same coloring, without the fur, like they were siblings.
The third figure looked exactly like the other person who could craft legendary items, and Grid recognized her instantly. Torva's greatsword hung on her back, and a spear Grid had seen once in a church hung beside it. Grid went white.
The last was new to them. A rabbit-eared man with deep crimson eyes and crimson hair, standing just a little too close to Torva.
In the distance stood two more women, with powerful undead waiting behind them. A shepherd with a crook walked among the kneeling golems, touching each one on the head, and every golem she touched rose and walked west toward the army.
Many extremely powerful individuals could be seen in the Golem King's ranks, and everyone feared what might happen next.
Seconds passed. Grid and his guild stared into the serious eyes of the four in front of them. Then powerful footsteps sounded from the direction of the army.
The army stepped aside, and what came through plunged everyone deeper into fear.
A large, imposing man stepped forward, wearing a mechanical mask. He had long gray hair and was built beyond measure, in a gray coat and gray pants, with several weapons holstered on his back and sides. Nobody watching doubted for a second that he could use them all.
It didn't help that when people tried to appraise him, this is what came up:
[The Golem King Daz]
Level: ????
Not three question marks, which would at least mean a three-digit level they might stand a chance against. Four. This person was so far out of their league that they might as well give up on fighting him before the thought could even form.
He stopped at the front of his army, looked directly at the newly formed Overgeared guild, and scoffed.
Then he made a statement. Not a request.
"Grid, and those of the 'Overgeared' guild. I will be watching you all closely."
He cracked his neck loud enough for everyone to hear.
"As a courtesy to that foolish blacksmith, I won't destroy that foolish wizard. But if you don't remove this problem at its source, I will be forced to take it into my own hands."
Nobody but the guild members noticed, but he was looking directly at Grid when he said it.
Soon a portal opened behind the army, and they began walking into it, the reconstructed golems going with them. Before he left, the Golem King waved his hand, and dozens of eagles flew toward the Overgeared guild.
The guild members were wary of the eagles. But the golems they'd received from the Golem King's earlier quest had been extremely helpful in defending the Eternal Kingdom, and every one of them now stood at the same level as its partner.
So the guild visibly relaxed once the Golem King stepped through the portal. Everyone let out a breath they hadn't known they were holding.
On the other side of the portal, where nobody could see, the Golem King took off his mask, and let his daughter climb onto his back like she was seven years old again.