Chapter 163 - Leads
My head is throbbing a little bit when I woke up. As I look around the place, I wondered where I am. My head is in a bit of a woozy state but everything is still fresh in my mind. Strangely, something seems to be missing in my memory, and despite having an eidetic memory, I have a vague feeling that I don't remember the gap in my memories. It was some sort of memory while I was unconscious but strangely, I cannot remember it no matter how hard I try to recall the matter.
I stood up from the unfamiliar bed and rubbed my eyes. I quickly realized I am still in the game. So when I fired off the Incomplete Rhongomyniad, my body and consciousness are still intact which deemed the system to keep me in the game without forcefully logging me out.
I check if my weapon is still equipped and didn't melt after firing off the Incomplete Rhongomyniad and got relieved once I saw the Versatile Sword is still intact and still on its sheath. But then I noticed the arm that wielded the Versatile Weapon before firing it. I hold it with both hands but my left hand is the most dominant holder of the weapon. I am surprised when I saw the burn marks on my left arm. It was like it got scorched so badly in the grill.
"[Full Restoration]."
The healing magic immediately fixed the scar in my hands. I understood why it remained like this since no healers have access to [Full Restoration] just yet. Now that I am back in tip-top shape, I decided to look around and tried to remember where I was. But my train of thought was interrupted when Queen Tanya and my friends entered the room. I was even surprised when I saw Bloodaxe among them.
"Oh, it looks like the Hero has awakened. It looks like another further observation of his condition is now unnecessary since he already woke up from being unconscious!" Queen Tanya said as she entered the room.
"Bladeheart!" everyone rushed towards my position.
"Are you alright? How come you collapsed after using that skill while fighting the final boss? How come you just acted on your own?" Harmless Sparrow asked and checked up my wounds.
"You big dummy! Next time you do something like that, you should have told us so that we can prepare in case things like collapsing occurred! If the boss didn't die from your attack and you collapsed after using it, we are in a royal screwed-up situation!" Dolly said.
I can only scratch my head. Since we are desperate to win, I decided to use that even ignoring the consequences of my actions.
"Now, now, enough of that. What is done, is done. Don't keep dwelling on it. Anyways, everyone is eagerly waiting for your awakening. Your decision is the only thing they needed for the distribution of the loot. Bloodaxe here stopped them from getting the rewards since you are the actual leader and your decision is the most crucial one to them," Queen Tanya said.
"Damn, really?! How long did I pass out?" I asked.
"Not that long, around one hour and 30 minutes only in my estimation after the battle against the final boss."
It was a pain in the neck to do this and honestly, I am not interested in the loot. After all, I have the Blacksmith Ex-job, and creating items and armors by myself with good quality is good enough for me. Besides, they are going to be useless if my level is already high enough that their stats are incomparable to my current armor and my future clothes and accessories.
"Bloodaxe right?" I looked at Bloodaxe who was just quiet the whole time.
"Yes. We fought together earlier."
"Yeah, of course, I know. Anyways, since you acted as the leader, might as well continue doing so. I relinquish the status of being the leader. I also give you all the rights to distribute the loot to other players who participated in the final battle. Just cross me out from the players who needed to get the items since I am not interested in the loot."
Everyone in the room didn't expect my response about it. Even Queen Tanya was shocked when she heard my response.
"Are you serious about what you are saying Bladeheart? You are giving up your loot to others? Isn't that a huge waste?" Queen Tanya is more confused about it than anyone else because she probably thinks I will demand to get the best rewards. After all, I am the one who slays the final boss without becoming a sacrifice for Queen Tanya to make her move.
"As I said earlier, those gears and items are not something I will be interested in. And it would be a waste if I receive those, it would be better to give them to everyone else aside from me who needed those items. I don't think I needed it anyway."
Bloodaxe wanted to argue but Harmless Sparrow stooped him and shook her head. "If he said he didn't want it, that is absolute. Let's just follow his wishes instead."
He sighed and gave up from the notion after. "Fine. I will go ahead and distribute the items based on the contributions of everyone."
Bloodaxe, Harmless Sparrow, and Dolly left the room since they also needed to get their share of the loot. The only one left behind was Queen Tanya and me.
"It seems you are more than what meets the eye, Bladeheart. To think you have a fragment of the power of the Rhongomyniad in your weapon and managed to unleash it without dying especially since it is incomplete. Maybe you have the bloodline of the late King Arthur?"
"I don't think I have. However, I know his legends. I also know that the Rhongomyniad is one of King Arthur's weapons alongside two other weapons that was said to hold so much power."
Queen Tanya smiled and continue the topic. "Based on your reaction, it seems you are interested in King Arthur's weapons."
"I am interested indeed, Your Majesty. After all, I needed to know how to complete the Incomplete Rhongomyniad and things related to King Arthur and the original Rhongomyniad might at least give a reaction on how to unlock its fullest potential."
"I see. Many people dismiss King Arthur's legend as just a mere fantasy that happened a long time ago and was written for fun purposes and for kids to be inspired to be strong and kind like King Arthur. However, I might have some clue on King Arthur and how you might be able to receive more info regarding him. Interested? I bet you are compared to the loot that was dropped by Dirac, the dragon of darkness."
A pop-up appeared on my screen and I didn't expect to see the prompt that I have heard in the past timeline that was achieved by someone who received the Excalibur. This time, it was not that person who received the quest but me.
[Warning, this is a Heroic Quest Line. This quest is extremely hard and failing one single questline will dismiss the rest of the quest chain immediately. Are you prepared to embark and use this chance to learn more about this matter? Declining this quest will make this quest disappear to you and this will be available to other players instead.]
Yes/ No
Are you kidding? Why would I decline this? I pressed "Yes" and the current pop-up closed and another appeared after pressing "Yes".
[Heroic Questline: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table]
Initiate the questline? (You can delay this if you are still not ready yet)
Yes/ No
I press yes. There is no time limit anyway and I am aware of how hard the questline is. Accepting it can be considered as a side quest for me.
"So you are indeed interested. That's a good choice and I think you are also the one qualified that I think we are waiting for to take on this one."
"Me?"
"Yes. Out of all the people who are an adventurer like you, only you showed so much potential. Although it is a diamond in the rough, we can say you already exceeded everyone who was being eyed upon your's truly."
"So what is the deal with this anyway?" I asked.
"Alright, let's begin. During our last excavation trip in one of the destroyed ruins, one diary mentioned this and many were not convinced but wait, there is more. During the expedition, they found the same weapon that King Arthur wielded before into the stone slab like how King Arthur pulled it in the past. We heard it was returned to the lady in the lake after King Arthur died however, the weapon was clearly just the same in the stone slab and what is currently happening.
The first task assigned to you would be to scout the area and secure its perimeters, find relevant information, and gather the clues regarding the sword whether the Excalibur is real or just a hoax."