Eclipse.
It was the most famous Player faction in District 2, a powerful organization packed with renowned experts.
Over the past two years, they had cleared every large-scale World Quest and defeated every raid boss monster that descended upon the surface. They now reigned as the top faction capable of shaping the balance of power throughout District 2.
Rumors about them were everywhere. With every victory and successful return, their reputation only grew, until failure and starvation seemed like words that simply did not exist in their vocabulary.
Their leader, Jeong Uijin, was especially famous as a high-Level Player not only in District 2 but in other Districts as well. Since he had once defeated a raid boss alone, rumors claimed he possessed tremendous stats and unparalleled skills.
A famous elite faction respected throughout District 2 and beyond.
Joining Eclipse would mean no longer having to hide from monsters and survive on food they barely managed to obtain once every three days like they did now, but…
“Do you really think they’d take us?”
Jeong Iseul continued with an expression that said the idea was absurd.
“They used to accept powerless people too, but now they won’t take anyone unless they’re a fairly high Level. I heard even the low-Level Players still there are constantly terrified they’ll be kicked out.”
“I’m not saying we should join Eclipse as official members right away. I’m saying we should join forces with them.”
Iseul and Woo Jaekyung both looked puzzled, unable to see the distinction.
For their benefit, Kim Seokju decided to explain the information he had obtained that day in detail.
“While I was scouting this afternoon, a Player from another group told me Eclipse is gathering people on a large scale. Not permanent members. Players who’ll participate in the raid with them.”
“A raid? You mean that notification about some Sequence for the Main Quest?”
Iseul recalled the System notification that had appeared that morning.
It had announced the beginning of the First Sequence for Entry into the Main Quest and said that the Minotaur Lord would descend.
But she had not attached much importance to it.
After all, this was far from the first time a raid boss monster had appeared alongside a Quest.
“Eclipse has practically monopolized every similar raid boss hunt for the past six months. Won’t this time be the same?”
“The notification specifically called it the ‘First’ Sequence. Since no one knows how many Sequences there will be, Eclipse must have decided it would be too much for them to handle alone.”
“Even if they’re gathering people for the raid, do you really think Eclipse will accept a group full of low-Level Players like us? I wouldn’t even use us as porters.”
Iseul still looked unconvinced.
She had heard that Eclipse’s main members were upper-tier Players in their forties and fifties.
By comparison, the highest-Level people in their group were only in their thirties. Even Iseul, their strongest member, was merely a Level 38 mid-tier Player. Most of the others had not even reached Level 20 and were still low-tier Players.
Would the mighty Eclipse truly accept people like them into its raid party?
Naturally, it would be wonderful if they could get in.
Raid boss monsters were said to grant tremendous amounts of experience, so they might be able to level up. Depending on their contribution, they could also receive valuable items. Even securing a piece of the boss monster’s corpse would allow them to exchange it for a considerable number of coins at the trophy exchange.
The problem was that countless other factions and Players would be hoping to pick up those same scraps.
Reading Iseul’s thoughts, Seokju looked out into the dark night. He was remembering the relaxed voice of the young man he had heard earlier.
“That’s why we need him.”
A subtle gleam appeared in Seokju’s eyes.
“He’s a rare Player capable of taming monsters. How could Eclipse ignore someone with such an extraordinary skill?”
Iseul’s expression turned complicated.
“So, to sum it up… we put that monster tamer out front and shamelessly squeeze our way into the raid party too?”
“Right. Becoming official members might be impossible, but we could aim for a place at the bottom of the raid party. Porters, scouting support—anything. We just need an excuse to move with them.”
Seokju continued solemnly.
“What matters is making it look as though we and that man are a package deal. If Eclipse needs a monster tamer, it’ll be difficult for them to openly throw out the people traveling with him.”
Now that Seokju’s intentions were perfectly clear, Iseul and Jaekyung’s faces twisted into identical expressions.
“That’s underhanded…”
“That’s really underhanded…”
“If being underhanded puts food on the table, I’m all for it.”
Seokju showed not the slightest hint of shame.
That did not mean he intended to cling to the man while offering nothing in return.
Information, stealth reconnaissance, a temporary base—he would have to find something they could put on the table.
They obviously lacked the fighting power Eclipse wanted, but there should at least be some use for them as guides or support personnel.
He thought of the members waiting eagerly for their return like baby birds waiting for their mother.
Most of them were low Level. The majority possessed neither useful skills nor the courage to fight monsters. Even so, after surviving together for so long, they were practically family. If exploiting every possible opportunity could ease their worries about survival even slightly, then Seokju would do exactly that.
Iseul knew his personality well enough to understand that nothing she said would stop him now. He valued the group’s members more than his own life.
They have been complaining a lot lately.
There was not enough food. They were sick of energy bars. How long were they supposed to keep living like this?
As one of the group’s main fighters, Iseul had found it infuriating when the members, who did nothing but lounge around in hiding, started whining like that. More than once, she had seriously considered overturning everything and walking away.
But Seokju, their leader, had only comforted them no matter how much they complained. Even now, he was trying to recruit and use a complete stranger simply to create a safer life for them.
“Fine. Let’s say all of that works. But if that man really is a monster tamer, wouldn’t he already have a team? Someone with an ability that valuable can’t possibly be alone.”
“At least right now, there’s a good chance he’s alone inside that building. If he had a team with him, the werewolves wouldn’t be nearly that docile.”
Having heard the monster tamer’s voice, Seokju was convinced the man was currently alone. If other Players had been present, the monsters might not have dared attack, but they would at least have displayed hostility.
Remembering the werewolves standing upright like dogs at a celebrity meet-and-greet, quietly gazing inside with shining eyes, Seokju continued laying out his reasoning.
“People living communally in a group develop the habit of conserving food. No one would indulge in cooking expensive stew ingredients just for himself. Especially now that the Special Supply Stations are gone. Fresh vegetables are worth their weight in gold because you can’t obtain them anymore, no matter how badly you want them.”
Seokju paused to swallow. Merely remembering the smell made him hungry again.
“Having fresh vegetables and seasonings in a situation like this doesn’t simply mean he has a lot of coins. It means he’s either strong enough to travel through dangerous places where those ingredients can be found, or he has a separate supply route. Either way, he isn’t an ordinary Player.”
Only then did Iseul and Jaekyung look convinced. Iseul even grinned.
“Fine. Forget joining Eclipse’s raid party for now. Just establishing contact with that monster tamer wouldn’t hurt. Recruiting him into our group immediately is probably impossible, but it would be enough to create a reason to travel together.”
Anyone capable of controlling that many werewolves was bound to inspire high expectations.
At that moment, Jaekyung, who had been listening closely to their conversation, cautiously raised his hand.
“Um… but…”
Aware that both of them were now staring directly at him, he continued hesitantly.
“Even if he is a monster tamer… do you really think someone who calmly cooks fermented-cabbage stew surrounded by werewolves… is sane?”
Silence followed.
***
<07:00>
Just as I had fallen unconscious the instant midnight arrived, I opened my eyes at exactly seven in the morning, the same as always.
I had expected as much. Even though I had left the Special Supply Station, Trait: Mental Stability still remained, so I assumed my sleeping and waking times would be unchanged.
There was, however, one difference.
The cut is still there, just as I thought.
I pushed the System window displaying the time out of my field of vision and gently rubbed the bandage on my left index finger.
I had nicked it yesterday while slicing an onion taken from the spatial-storage room. It was hardly my first time cooking with items from the convenience store, but with the werewolves sniffing constantly and shoving their muzzles toward me the entire time, even I was bound to slip.
A faint sting lingered beneath the bandage. Whenever I slept in the Special Supply Station office, every injury had been completely healed by morning. Apparently, I could no longer expect that particular benefit.
Setting aside my disappointment, I slowly sat up.
I had laid down a waterproof sheet that had once been stored for display purposes, then brought out a clean pillow and blanket. Thanks to that, the bed was fairly comfortable. My body felt much lighter, and most of the exhaustion accumulated the previous day seemed to have faded.
It would have been perfect without the faint cloud of wolf fur drifting through the air.
I felt around beside the bed and switched on the device my hand found. Among the goods added when the convenience store became a Special Supply Station were portable self-powered generators and folding lamps, so I had installed one on the nightstand beside the bed.
The area around the king-size bed immediately brightened.
“Good morning…”
A gloomy-looking man was crouched on the floor beside the bed. The dark circles beneath his eyes made it look as though he had been awake all night.
A Player? Why is he here? Since when?
I froze with my hand still on the lamp.
Before going to sleep, I had driven every werewolf out of the building. Even so, I had never imagined a Player would slip inside during that interval.
Had he taken advantage of the fact that the werewolves scattered back into the buildings once the sun began rising?
Even then, approaching the very side of my bed required an unusual amount of nerve.
Unless he possessed some kind of stealth skill.
Before I could begin estimating how long he had been there, the man gave an awkward laugh.
“You sleep remarkably well… I was starting to wonder whether you were dead…”
At the time, I had no idea that the man had already spent nearly an hour and a half trying to wake me before finally giving up.
Even if I had known, I probably would not have had the attention to spare for him.
Not with the System window that had appeared before my eyes.
<A Player eligible to receive a Quest has been contacted.>
<Would you like to create a Quest?>