[Lucas] stared at Ethan's reply, momentarily stunned. Just a moment ago, he hadn't only received news about the Coffin Guild players' movements.
He'd also learned what actually went down in Frostspire Tower.
[Windchaser] just got lucky and happened to run into some high-level Coffin Guild players and a seriously tough boss.
His earlier guess that Ethan was a pro gamer had turned out to be wrong.
The game ID [Windchaser] couldn't be found linked to any pro player in other games at all.
So, in the end, it all came down to [Windchaser] just being lucky. It was a series of coincidences that caused such heavy losses for the Coffin Guild players.
[Lucas] didn't get cold or distant toward [Windchaser] just because his guess had been wrong.
He still sent out a warning message.
[Lucas]: [Bro, there's no hidden boss in the sewer map. And this time, the Coffin Guild definitely won't make the same mistake again.]
[Lucas]: [Live to fight another day. There's really no need to act tough.]
[Windchaser]: [Act tough? Just wait and see.]
[Windchaser]: [By the way, do you want a guild quest worth 100 reputation points?]
How much?
100 points?
When [Lucas] saw the message, he rubbed his eyes, wondering if he'd read it wrong.
To upgrade a guild from level one to level two only took 10 reputation points.
But to upgrade from level two to level three, you needed exactly 100 reputation points.
[Lucas] actually had his own guild, but it was only level one. Because the Coffin Guild had gone crazy snatching up guild quests to level up, the other guilds hadn't been able to get any at all.
In this kind of situation, a guild quest worth 100 reputation points would definitely get every major guild fighting over it.
Honestly, even guilds from other safe zones would do whatever it takes to snatch up a quest like that if they found out about it.
Everyone understands that if you fall behind at the start, you'll keep falling behind.
As long as you can get ahead of others early in the game and gain an advantage, you can snowball that lead.
[Lucas] was so excited his hands were shaking. He didn't bother sending a message—he just went straight to requesting a call.
Time seemed to crawl by. [Lucas] could only hear his own heartbeat as he stared at his watch, waiting for [Windchaser] to accept the call.
As soon as he saw Ethan pick up, he instantly blurted out, "Bro, come on, a guild quest worth 100 reputation points—are you serious?"
"It's gotta be fake, right? Right now, guild quests take a ton of effort, and you only get 1 or 2 reputation points tops."
"One quest for 100 reputation points? How could that be real?"
Before Ethan could even answer, [Lucas] shot himself down. It wasn't that he didn't trust Ethan, it was just that 100 reputation points sounded way too outrageous.
It was honestly so much that it was hard to believe.
From [Lucas]'s reaction, Ethan could tell just how valuable the [Guild Hidden Quest Intel] he'd gotten from killing the Lizard Monster really was.
So Ethan replied, "It's real. I've got a Guild Hidden Quest Intel—purple quality."
[Lucas]'s voice was trembling as he exclaimed, "Bro, where did you even get another purple-quality Intel, and it's a hidden quest type on top of that?"
"Hidden class, hidden quest, and they're both purple quality—are you cheating or something?"
Ethan's tone was calm as he answered, "It's not that big a deal. It wasn't that hard. Maybe I just got lucky."
[Lucas] still couldn't calm down. His breathing was rapid, his blood was pumping, and his face was flushed with excitement.
He took a few deep breaths before continuing, "Ethan, one price—how about one million?"
Ethan actually thought that price was acceptable. But he wanted to use this Intel to do something bigger.
He wanted to make sure the Coffin Guild could never set foot in Safe Zone 9527 again!
He was determined to single-handedly bring down the Coffin Guild, the group that ordinary players feared!
He wanted every player and every guild in Safe Zone 9527 to remember—anyone who messed with him would face his wrath.
The Coffin Guild was the sacrificial lamb he chose to warn the others.
So, how exactly was he going to do it?
Ethan had already made his plans. There was a trace of anticipation and a smile in his voice as he spoke slowly:
"I want to auction off this piece of intel. Any guild can bid for it, but there's one condition: you have to kill ten Coffin Guild players who enter the sewer map."
[Lucas] instantly sucked in a sharp breath. He stood rooted to the spot, replaying Ethan's words in his mind—if people from other guilds got wind of this…
There was no doubt about it: those guilds would pounce on Coffin Guild players like a pack of starving hyenas.
No guild with any ambition would pass up the chance to bid for this intel.
The Coffin Guild, who wanted to hunt Ethan down, would themselves become prey—hunted by the other guilds for that purple-grade Guild Hidden Quest Intel.
But, at the same time, this meant the relationship between Ethan and the Coffin Guild would only get worse.
Ethan left him with just one sentence: "It's only the Coffin Guild. Don't worry. Besides, they're running out of time."
With that, Ethan hung up. He still had things to do—he needed to get to level eight as soon as possible.
...
Inside Safe Zone 9527, at the headquarters of the Everlasting Guild, [Lucas] stood there in a daze, staring at his watch, looking completely lost.
How could it be that, in Safe Zone 9527, the Coffin Guild—who struck fear into the hearts of almost every player—was, in Ethan's eyes, nothing more than a stray dog by the side of the road?
He remembered that Ethan had mentioned his level before—only level five.
At the time, [Lucas] had thought Ethan was just saying that casually. But now it seemed to be true.
How could a newbie at just level five talk about the Coffin Guild with such disdain?
Even [Lucas] himself, who had long been fed up with the Coffin Guild, could do nothing but watch—there was nothing he could do about them.
The Coffin Guild's leader, [Overlord], was no ordinary person. "Dawnfall Online" had already been around for a while, and [Lucas] had basically never seen [Overlord] take a loss.
Only [Windchaser] had ever managed to deal a serious blow to [Overlord]; no one else could touch him.
Just then, the player [Flying Fish] walked over. He looked at [Lucas], who was lost in thought, and asked curiously:
"Boss, what's up? Did something happen?"
[Lucas] took a deep breath, fixed his eyes on [Flying Fish], and said slowly: "Someone just told me about a guild quest worth a hundred reputation points. You—"
He hadn't finished his sentence before [Flying Fish] cut him off in shock. [Flying Fish] gaped at him, disbelief written all over his face.
"How much? A hundred points? That guy must've messed up the numbers, right? These days, even quests worth ten guild reputation points get snatched up by other guilds, let alone one worth a hundred!"
"Who's the lucky bastard? Wait, is this another high-quality intel reward?"
[Lucas] nodded and said, "Yep! And you can guess—who would have intel like this?"
[Flying Fish] suddenly stepped right in front of [Lucas], staring him straight in the eyes. He swallowed hard, then asked, with a mixture of uncertainty and hope:
"Don't tell me it's my big bro, [Windchaser]?"
"Oh my god, [Windchaser] must be cheating or something! How can anyone be this lucky, to get two high-quality intel rewards?"
Faced with [Flying Fish]'s shock, [Lucas] patted him on the shoulder, signaling him not to overthink it.
Then he spoke slowly: "Get in touch with every guild in Safe Zone 9527 as fast as you can. Tell them this, If they want a shot at bidding for the hundred-point guild quest, they have to kill ten Coffin Guild players in the sewer map."
[Flying Fish]'s jaw was about to hit the floor. Ever since a moment ago, he hadn't been able to close his mouth, completely floored by one shocking revelation after another.
And now, what was he hearing?
You had to kill ten Coffin Guild players just to qualify for the auction?
[Windchaser] really was a madman!
Once this news got out, the Coffin Guild would be at war with [Windchaser] for life!
Seeing [Flying Fish]'s reaction, [Lucas] imitated Ethan's tone and said coolly, "It's just the Coffin Guild…"