Chapter 276 - 272: Quest From Rale
'Little Girl, you were pretty smug, weren't you. This time, the winner will be different, though. I won't let you escape,' Ryde thought as he smiled while thinking about the Second Inheritor of Death Domain that was going to be here if things went like last time.
He believed that the second Inheritor might already be here, hiding in the palace along with other infiltrators.
Ryder and Rale were left in the palace alone as they waited for High Duke Mila to return with other High Dukes.
'Wait a minute? If there were already here and knew about everything, why didn't they attack me in the previous timeline when I was alone with Rale in this great hall and when High Duke Mila left with Devilia to bring High Duke Eston here?'
'Without the presence of and High Dukes, they could've easily killed me, and the dangers to them would've been really low. Why did they wait until High Dukes were here? Were they lying about knowing everything? Or was it actually the Vampire King that helped them get here after I left the Great Hall with Rale?'
'No! Even though High Duke Eston was involved in Dreimaia, High Duke Mila was still here. She was with him. There's no way that she would allow the Vampire King to leave the Great Hall or do anything without her watch!'
'That can only mean that the Death Domain wanted the High Dukes here. This was a part of their plan. They want the High Dukes to see my dead body personally so that they lose themselves in anger and attack the Death Domain? No, attacking Death Domain would only help her opponent. She wouldn't plan this. Just what did that girl plan? I'll have to beat the heck out of her to get her to spill the information.'
Ryder continued thinking as he tried to make sense of the situation regarding the girl and her plan, but he couldn't come to a concrete conclusion
He glanced at Rale on his side.
"Rale?" Ryder inquired.
"Yes, Your highness," Rale responded, looking back.
" How many people do you think actually know about your real strength? Is there really no one other than the High Dukes and me?" Ryder asked Rale.
"I don't think anyone other than you all knows about it. Ah, right. My team knows about it. The team that was with us when I used my full strength last time," Rale replied to Ryder.
"Oh, right. They are there too," Ryder muttered as he remembered that there were other guards when Rale had unsealed himself in the Death Domain.
"They are under the Royal Oath, so they probably won't tell anyone. Is there anyone else that knows?" Ryder asked again. "Is there someone that could have leaked it to the Death Domain?"
" The only other person that knows is my father," Rale replied to Ryder.
" Your father? He was the Royal Commander before you, right?" Ryder asked Rale.
"He was almost equal to the High Dukes even before Rale became the Royal Commander years ago. He might have become as strong as a High Duke. If there's a war, he can come in really handy," He continued.
"Yeah, my father is many times stronger than me. I can't even hope to compare. As for his help, that's impossible," Rale let out, shaking his head.
"Why is that?" Ryder asked in confusion.
He wondered if Rale's father was dead? He didn't get that feeling from Rale's words, though.
" It's the oath of the Royal Commander. After fulfilling their duty and passing on the responsibility to the next Royal Commander, they leave the Kingdom and go into anonymity. They can never use their strength for anything else than protecting themselves, and they are required to live in a place of their choice that is not in the Demon Realm. No one knows where the previous Royal Commander lives," Rale told Ryder as he frowned.
"In fact, even if there's a war, we would have no way of getting that information to my father. We don't even know which isolated corner of the world he's living in at the moment," He continued.
" That sucks. He would've been a big help. Why is there an oath like that? That sounds stupid," Ryder asked, trying to understand the situation.
Rale looked at Ryder and sighed.
"There's a long history behind it. Please forgive me but I can't tell you. We are prohibited from talking about it, though. You should ask the High Dukes if you're curious about it," Rale let out, shaking his head.
"High Dukes? I am indeed curious about him," Ryder muttered as he frowned.
Rale looked at Ryder in hesitation for some moments before he opened his lips to say something.
"Your Highness, I should not ask you of anything, but I have a request for you. Can you please help me?" Rale asked Ryder with hesitation clear in his face.
"What can I help you with? Sure go ahead. If it's within my means, I'll do it," Ryder let out, nodding his head.
"Before my father left the Demon Realm after passing the Royal Guard position to me, he gave me something. He told me to pass it to the next heir of the Demon Realm, and he said that only the next heir could uncover the mystery behind it. He said that with the help of this item, the long lost treasure of the Demon Realm could be found again," Rale told Ryder.
"I beg you to please find the lost treasure of the Demon Realm and fulfill the wish of my father," He continued.
< Royal Commander Rale has issued a quest to you>
<Quest: Find the secret behind the item left behind by the previous Royal Commander>
<Quest Grade: A>
<Quest Difficulty: High>
< Recommended Level: Above Level 200>
<Description: Royal Commander Rale left behind an item before he went into banishment. Use that item to find the lost treasure of the Demon Realm that has been lost for over a hundred years>
<Reward: Undying Loyalty of Royal Commander Rale>
<Reward: +10 levels>
<Reward: The Moon Armor>
<Reward: 1000 Fame Points>
<Warning: Failure of Quest will result in Royal Commander Rale losing all his loyalty and adoration towards you>
Ryder was surprised as he saw the quest prompt.
' Did I really receive a quest from Rale, and all I had to do to get the quest was to ask Rale about how father? Strange. I guess I shouldn't be shocked. NPCs give the quest, and Rale is an NPC too. It is not impossible for him to give me a quest,' Ryder thought as he looked at the quest prompt before you.
'The rewards are really nice. What's the Moon Armor, though? Is it a Unique Grade Item like Moon Scythe? If it is, then it would be awesome. Could it be that the Moon Armor is the lost treasure that I need to find? I should really ask Rale about it. This quest will be really good,' he thought.
He also wondered about the warning under the quest prompt. The warning meant that Rale would lose his respect for Ryder, which wasn't good.
'I need Rale. I can't lose him, or it would be difficult for me to control the Demon Realm as effectively as I can now. If I took the quest and lost, I would be at a real disadvantage,' He continued as he started considering if it was worth it. Ultimately, he came to a conclusion that the risk was worth it.
He tapped on yes as he saw a counter below the quest. The quest was automatically rejected if the quest wasn't accepted within a specific period of time.
"I will accept this request," Ryder told Rale as he tapped yes on the Quest prompt.
" That's great. Let me give you that item right now," Rale smiled as he gave a scroll to Ryder.
<You have received the map of the Moon Armor>
"Map of the Moon Armor. I guess I was right. The Moon Armor is indeed the lost treasure of the Kingdom," Ryder muttered as he looked at the scroll. "This should be the map that leads to it or to a clue of the Moon Armor."
"Rale, is the Moon Armor that lost treasure you talked about?" Ryder asked Rale.
"Yes. The long lost treasure of the Demon Realm. The Moon Armor that was said to be carved from the same material as the Moon Scythe. It was stolen from the Fourth Demon Emperor by his brother that ran away with the Moon Armor. It was never found again," Rale told Ryder.
"It's related to Moon Scythe. It must be an overpowered item as well," Ryder muttered as he looked at the scroll.
" What do you know about this scroll?" he asked again.
"I don't know anything. I was prohibited from opening it. Father didn't tell me anything about it either. All he said that it was to be given to the next heir if he wished," Rale told Ryder.