Chapter 160

Chapter 161: The Quest of “The Great Tree Sea” (First Update, Requesting Subscriptions!)

Not just Izay, but the topic also piqued the curiosity of several tables of Adventurers seated nearby.

They noisily raised their cups in inquiry.

“Mysterious Monsters? What’s that? Never heard of it.”

“It’s normal we haven’t heard of monsters outside Orario. The continent is vast; there are always some strange things out there.”

“That’s not right. This time, it seems different from those strange things. I’ve heard about abnormal proliferation of monsters outside Orario, already endangering the safety of villages along the way!”

“Whoa, is that true? How come I haven’t heard about this?”

“It was only announced at the Guild Headquarters this morning. They’re looking for willing Adventurers to investigate the situation, but I don’t plan on going. It’s apparently very far from Orario.”

“How far?”

“The other end of the continent? Several cities near there have reacted and initiated quests, hoping the Guild can investigate and resolve the cause.”

“That’s… really too far…”

For Adventurers who rarely leave the city of Orario, going to the other side of the continent is quite… a challenge?

Moreover, this is an investigative mission. Adventurers with little experience leaving Orario would have to prepare themselves for months without returning if they accept it.

Probably only the Deities active beyond Orario and their Familial Groups/Factions would take on this quest.

To the Adventurers within Orario, this task is rather unappealing.

“Mysterious Monsters?… At the edge of the continent, unknown monsters are abnormally proliferating?”

Sitting in his seat listening to the conversation, Izay began to ponder for a moment.

It feels somewhat familiar.

In the world of mistakes, events occurring outside the city of Orario are few.

Hardly needing to recall much, Izay had a guess.

At the edge of the continent, corresponding to the east opposite to Orario’s west, lies one of the three great mysteries of the world, “The Great Tree Sea.”

And the anomaly rising within the Great Tree Sea undoubtedly is…

“Mr. Izay, are you interested in what they are talking about?”

“—?”

A calm voice came from beside him. Turning his head, he saw Ryu returning from the kitchen with steaming dishes.

“I noticed Mr. Izay paying attention to the Adventurers’ conversations over there.”

Placing the dishes on the table, Ryu followed Izay’s previous gaze towards the group holding their cups and chatting idly.

“Hearing your words, yes, I am somewhat interested in what they’re saying.”

“Such occurrences happen occasionally, capturing everyone’s attention… Like when Mr. Izay leveled up recently.”

“Ryu… Are you teasing me? Surprising~”

“Just stating facts.”

Ryu gave Izay a faint smile but quickly reverted to her usual cool demeanor.

“This topic has been discussed multiple times by customers in the tavern today. Such enthusiasm is rare.”

“Considering the unusual proliferation of monsters outside Orario, it’s almost unprecedented, isn’t it?”

From the perspective of the Adventurers, Izay could somewhat understand their enthusiasm in discussing this matter.

Upon hearing this, Ryu’s expression didn’t change; she blinked silently and then offered her suggestion after a brief pause.

“If Mr. Izay is concerned about this matter, I think it’s better to check the Guild early. If a certain number of Adventurers take on the quest, it will be temporarily withdrawn.”

Once the quest is temporarily withdrawn, gathering information won’t be as easy.

This is what Ryu wanted to convey.

“Thank you for your advice, Ryu. I’ll follow it~” Izay smiled slightly, expressing his gratitude softly.

And Ryu replied with a smile: “I’m glad I could help.”

……

The next day, the sky was clear blue, and the comfortable breeze blew gently. The warm sunlight illuminated the neatly paved stone ground.

The weather was still sunny, and people walking on the streets wore smiles, filling the entire road with cheerful voices.

Yao humans and carriages were bustling continuously, while town residents and travelers dressed in travel gear moved back and forth on the broad streets.

At a corner of the northwestern street, Izay was heading toward the Guild Headquarters.

Just as he had discussed with Ryu last night, Izay, who was concerned about the unusual proliferation of monsters outside Orario, arrived early at the Adventurer’s Guild.

Passing through the crowd on the northwestern street and the endless avenue, Izay entered the guild hall he hadn’t visited for a long time.

As always, the first thing he saw was the throng of Adventurers gathered in the spacious hall.

Almost all of them surrounded the reception desk and the most conspicuous bulletin board, making these two places completely inaccessible.

After considerable effort, Izay squeezed to the front of the large bulletin board and closely observed the series of notices and quests posted there.

The one at the top was the quest document that guests were discussing fervently in the tavern last night.

[Quest: Unusual Proliferation Phenomenon of Unknown Monsters Outside Orario, Seeking Adventurers or Familial Groups/Factions to Investigate]

[Content: Proceed to the eastern edge of the continent to conduct investigations into the unknown form of monsters, ascertain the reasons for their appearance and abnormal proliferation, and carry out necessary extermination during the process.]

[Requirements: Level 2 and above Adventurers, Familial Group/Faction rank reaching E level]

Below the quest document, it was noted that the quest giver was the Adventurer’s Guild, and the reward would be discussed in detail upon completion of the quest.

Since the Guild hasn’t yet determined the situation there, the reward cannot be set.

However, the rewards for such quests are usually extremely generous.

There’s no doubt that this is a high-demand Guild quest.

Level 2 and above Adventurers and Familial Groups/Factions ranked E level or higher—these two points alone could eliminate more than half of Orario’s population.

More than half of the Adventurers are Level 1, so this isn’t a joke.

“The eastern edge of the continent… Could it be anywhere other than one of the three great mysteries of the world, ‘The Great Tree Sea?'”

When seeing the specific quest, Izay had already completely confirmed his suspicions.

This feels unexpected, but somehow reasonable?

Although the monster uprising in the Great Tree Sea mystery erupted after the start of the Orario plot,

But, that’s a complete eruption. Note the word “complete.”

If it’s just a loosening of the seal, then it makes sense for it to happen earlier?

Isn’t it common? In story plots.

The great demon king of a thousand years ago broke free from the seal, needing to remain silent for a while before causing chaos in the world.

The reason is usually because being sealed for too long weakens their power, requiring time to recover something…

Thus giving the protagonist time to grow, eventually getting crushed directly.