- Spoiler:
- Job Title: Thy Enemy has a Face
Rank: D
Player Requirements: Must have completed Investigating the Growth first.
Solo Word Count: 500 Words
Group Word Count: 1000 Words
Job Requirements: Kill the zombies, before reaching and fighting/killing the Robed Figure.
Job Location: Beanstalk Village (Tainted Forest nearby)
Job Description: You receive word from the scientist and come to meet him. When you see him he seems panicky. He explains to you that the growth is corrupting the land and turning it into a sort of siphon, or magical drain, pulling in life force and mana from everything and anything. He tells you that you need to find the source and put a stop to it. He is unsure how far the growth will spread.
When you reach the forest you find it overgrown with tainted plants and growth. The animals are all gone however. The closer you move to the center, which is between Beanstalk Village and Mount Hakobe, you encounter zombies. These corpses seem recent, looking to be either huntsmen or wizards who traveled into the tainted lands. After killing the monsters you soon reach a point where you see the source: It is a large pillar made of unbreakable obsidian. The robed figure approaches and seems unsurprised that a wizard is here and attacks you.
After killing the robed figure you can find multiple things on him. A coin that is identical to the shrouded stalker's coin. A marking on his arm that looks like it may be a guild mark but none that you've ever seen before, even among dark guilds. A book written in an unreadable language. However if you observe it carefully, and flip through the pages, you notice that it looks similar to a sort of religious book, sort of like scriptures.
Upon return to the group you can tell them about the undead, the robed figure, and hand in the items, also telling them that the object is indestructible. OR you can tell them that you destroyed the source and instead go to an informant for dark wizards, thieves, assassins, or others who operate outside the law, share the information and show the items. Either way you shall receive the full reward and information.
Both the wizard and the informant will tell you that they don't know about most of the items, but the language is ancient and abandoned. They can make out enough however: The title is 'Unyielding Death'. They inform you that this robed man, was probably a cultist.
Enemies:
Weak: Zombies. They appear to be recent corpses, fully intact but brain dead. They move slowly and swing their arms wildly. They deal half your rank in damage each attack. It takes three rank D attacks to kill them. x7
Normal: Funcitoning Zombies. These recent corpses have had time to adjust and are more aware of how to dodge and strike accurately. They deal your rank in damage each attack. It takes four rank D attacks to kill them. x6
Strong: Runners. These zombies are insane, charging with surprising speed at whatever appears to be alive, raking their claws at you. They deal your rank in damage each post, and it’s almost impossible to avoid attacks once they reach you. It takes six rank D attacks to kill them. x3
Boss:
Black Robed Figure. The robes are black with red designs in them and a skull on the front and hood. The figure has no visible weapon but turns out to have magic.
Spell 1: Shadow Force. Releases three black spheres that deal your rank in damage. These spheres hone in on you, but the longer they last the smaller they become before vanishing entirely.
Spell 2: Grip of the Dead. Summon’s a skeleton hand that latches onto you and immobilizes you for a single post. The figure’s next spell automatically hits you full force the next post.
Spell 3: Drain Life. Deals half your rank in damage, and restores health equivalent to half rank D damage.
Spell 4: Undead Call. Brings one or two more monsters into the battle. Strength depends on which you have faced beforehand.
It takes twelve rank D hits to kill him.
Reward: 2,500 jewel
This job questline continues in the B-Rank job: Finding the Link
I've been out there and seen the things she's made
Things only seemed to be going more and more downhill. By the time that Mythal had retrieved as many samples as he was comfortable holding onto, the forest had begun to deteriorate at an increased pace. He returned to the village and handed the samples back to the herbalist, who was now accompanied by a man. She introduced him as her husband; a scientist who studied biology and herbology as well. He had only recently returned from a trip, only an hour ago or so, and had taken to studying her notes as soon as he came back. What he had to say was concerning.
“Whatever this plague is, it’s siphoning off the land,” he explained.
“Siphonin’ off the land? What do you mean?” Mythal asked.
“It’s quite literally sucking up the ethernano from the world around it. And it isn’t removing it from life either – it’s simply absorbing that as well. Life forces, magic forces; they both are going to fall victim to this plague. And it’s going to continue to evolve and spread if we don’t find a way to stop it. If my wife’s calculations are correct, there is a focal point for the plague – deep in the forest,” he said as he took out a chart and pointed at it for Mythal to see.
And so it was determined that he was their only chance to stopping the spread. The Darkness King headed back into the forest, moving through the dying plant life swiftly. He couldn’t sense any animals anymore, all of them having retreated from the plague or having completely fallen victim to it. As he moved deeper into the woods though, he did sense movement. As he moved past some foliage, he found himself practically face to face with a pack of zombies. Shambling, rotting corpses turned to face him, low and sickly groans escaping their gullets. They were still dressed in their outfits; tattered remnants of hunting and wizarding gear. Poor souls that had wandered too deep and fallen victim to the plague.
That meant that it could infect humans too. Without a second thought, Mythal took out his sword and leapt through the group, swinging his sword from side to side as he divorced their heads from their necks. He heard a loud screech and turned to find three more zombies, moving much faster than the ones he had already cut down. Mythal reached out with his magical senses and pulled out a tower of darkness beneath the charging creatures, wrapping them up in the dangerous twister and tearing them apart.
As the energy cleared, he saw something just over the grassy knoll. He walked up the low hill to find a pillar of obsidian, sitting in a clearing. He could feel the magic ebbing off of it, like a nasty smell that radiated off a corpse. “Looks like I found the source…” he mumbled as he brought his sword up, ready to strike.
Movement. He turned just in time to see a robed figure dive out from the woods, releasing a trifecta of black spheres that raced towards him. The God Slayer inhaled sharply, sucking out the dark magic from the attacks and reducing them to nothing as he absorbed the magic. The robed figure didn’t flinch – he pointed towards the ground and pulled upwards, causing the soil to shift and crack. From beneath the forest floor emerged a skeleton, of impressive and imposing size. It dragged a large sword out from behind it, hoisting it up and onto its shoulders.
But frankly, Mythal didn’t have time to play. He brought his arm out and snapped, unleashing a magical blast of shadow that tore the skeleton to shreds. Whatever remained fell backwards onto the robed figure, crushing him beneath the bones. As soon as the man was dead, the obelisk lost all its power and fell silent, the magical aura fading away. Mythal glanced at it briefly before he walked over to the robed figure, the upper half of his torso somehow still intact. He rummaged through his pockets, hoping to find some kind of clue to who he was. What he found was another odd coin, a strange marking on his arm similar to a guild brand and a book written in a strange language he couldn’t understand.
It wasn’t until he brought the objects back to the herbalist and the scientist that he was given any insight. The husband couldn’t read much but he could, at least, make out the title of the book. Unyielding Death; and it seemed an entire cult had been built around the dark and ominous tome as well.
Great. Another cult. Just what Mythal needed.
“Whatever this plague is, it’s siphoning off the land,” he explained.
“Siphonin’ off the land? What do you mean?” Mythal asked.
“It’s quite literally sucking up the ethernano from the world around it. And it isn’t removing it from life either – it’s simply absorbing that as well. Life forces, magic forces; they both are going to fall victim to this plague. And it’s going to continue to evolve and spread if we don’t find a way to stop it. If my wife’s calculations are correct, there is a focal point for the plague – deep in the forest,” he said as he took out a chart and pointed at it for Mythal to see.
And so it was determined that he was their only chance to stopping the spread. The Darkness King headed back into the forest, moving through the dying plant life swiftly. He couldn’t sense any animals anymore, all of them having retreated from the plague or having completely fallen victim to it. As he moved deeper into the woods though, he did sense movement. As he moved past some foliage, he found himself practically face to face with a pack of zombies. Shambling, rotting corpses turned to face him, low and sickly groans escaping their gullets. They were still dressed in their outfits; tattered remnants of hunting and wizarding gear. Poor souls that had wandered too deep and fallen victim to the plague.
That meant that it could infect humans too. Without a second thought, Mythal took out his sword and leapt through the group, swinging his sword from side to side as he divorced their heads from their necks. He heard a loud screech and turned to find three more zombies, moving much faster than the ones he had already cut down. Mythal reached out with his magical senses and pulled out a tower of darkness beneath the charging creatures, wrapping them up in the dangerous twister and tearing them apart.
As the energy cleared, he saw something just over the grassy knoll. He walked up the low hill to find a pillar of obsidian, sitting in a clearing. He could feel the magic ebbing off of it, like a nasty smell that radiated off a corpse. “Looks like I found the source…” he mumbled as he brought his sword up, ready to strike.
Movement. He turned just in time to see a robed figure dive out from the woods, releasing a trifecta of black spheres that raced towards him. The God Slayer inhaled sharply, sucking out the dark magic from the attacks and reducing them to nothing as he absorbed the magic. The robed figure didn’t flinch – he pointed towards the ground and pulled upwards, causing the soil to shift and crack. From beneath the forest floor emerged a skeleton, of impressive and imposing size. It dragged a large sword out from behind it, hoisting it up and onto its shoulders.
But frankly, Mythal didn’t have time to play. He brought his arm out and snapped, unleashing a magical blast of shadow that tore the skeleton to shreds. Whatever remained fell backwards onto the robed figure, crushing him beneath the bones. As soon as the man was dead, the obelisk lost all its power and fell silent, the magical aura fading away. Mythal glanced at it briefly before he walked over to the robed figure, the upper half of his torso somehow still intact. He rummaged through his pockets, hoping to find some kind of clue to who he was. What he found was another odd coin, a strange marking on his arm similar to a guild brand and a book written in a strange language he couldn’t understand.
It wasn’t until he brought the objects back to the herbalist and the scientist that he was given any insight. The husband couldn’t read much but he could, at least, make out the title of the book. Unyielding Death; and it seemed an entire cult had been built around the dark and ominous tome as well.
Great. Another cult. Just what Mythal needed.
| Beanstalk Village | Rune Knights |
| 781/500 | |
Let me tell you, they are fear.
✿
