B2 Ch 90 - The Great Midas

Jester checked the other two items he had received, which turned out to be body and head armor. Both were Epic grades.

[Carapace of the Withered | Epic | Body]

[CON+35]

[Weight: 265]

[Durability: 956/1000]

[Skills: Earthbound Regeneration | Petrified Shell]

[Description: A living suit of hardened bark and chitin. The armor seems almost alive, drawing strength from the earth around it.]

[Skill: Earthbound Regeneration (Passive)]

[When standing on natural ground (grass, soil, stone), gain +12 HP regeneration per second. Effect doubles if rooted to the same tile for 5+ consecutive seconds.]

[Skill: Petrified Shell (Active)]

[Harden the carapace for 8 seconds, reducing all incoming damage by 35% but reducing movement speed by 40%.]

He inspected the first one and watched the demo on the system panel. Once equipped, the armor would spread across the wearer's entire body, covering them in some kind of plant-like carapace. It looked similar to the smaller monsters they had fought earlier, turning the wearer into something almost monstrous.

Not bad. Its defense was high, and both of its skills were defensive.

Still, it was not exactly suited to Jester. He preferred dodging, hiding, or disappearing entirely rather than standing there and taking damage. But he was sure there would eventually be a situation where something like this would come in handy.

[Crown of the Withered | Epic | Head]

[MAG+32 | CON+18]

[Weight: 95]

[Durability: 756/800]

[Skills: Overgrowth Reach | Siphon Bloom]

[Description: A crown of petrified vines and midnight-blooming flowers, radiating a pact between growth and decay. Its bearer commands nature's fury with unnatural efficiency, bending flora to suffocate and entangle without mercy.]

[Skill: Overgrowth Reach]

[Extends the range of all Nature-type area spells by 40%. Passive ability, always active.]

[Skill: Siphon Bloom]

[Cast a wide-area Nature ability at 18% reduced mana cost. Cooldown: 8 seconds. Stacks with Overgrowth Reach.]

The second item was head armor, and… Jester sighed.

Once again, it did not suit him at all. He should probably just give it to Elora. She would get much more use out of it. Actually, now that he thought about it, he might as well give her both pieces.

This raid boss really seemed determined to reward Elora instead of him.

Well, at least Jester would get something in return for giving her rewards like these. More Chaos, and possibly another ability.

There were still a couple of items left. Jester checked them and found that both were Epic grade.

[Living Root Fiber | Epic | ×6]

[Description: A tough, flexible fiber taken from a living root network. Used to craft bows, whips, armor bindings, or equipment that can slowly regenerate durability over time.]

[Seed of the Elder Bloom | Epic | ×3]

[Description: A strange living seed left behind after the Elder Bloom dies. When planted in suitable soil, it grows into a permanent high-grade resource plant. What it becomes depends on the environment where it is planted.]

The first was crafting material. He would need to find a crafter to actually make use of it, but with an Epic-grade material, it should produce at least an Epic item.

The other one was a seed. That sounded a little concerning. It did not mean the monster itself would grow out of the ground again, right?

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Well, if it did, that would actually be pretty convenient. He could just hunt it again.

He would ask Igrio to plant it later. Lula could water it too, so at least the two of them would have something to do.

Was that all?

Jester had honestly expected something more impressive. For a raid boss, the drops somehow felt a little underwhelming. Siki should have received her own share of the loot, but since Jester had landed the finishing blow, he should have gotten some of the most valuable items.

Or maybe the items he got were already extremely valuable. He just could not make good use of most of them himself, which made them feel less useful than they actually were.

He could always sell them if he needed the money. Or he could simply let Elora use the equipment and get more Chaos in return. That might actually be more valuable to him anyway.

Okay, that was enough of the raid boss loot.

Jester still had other things to take care of today, especially checking the city's progress himself. He wanted to see how things were developing firsthand so he could decide what needed to be improved next.

He stood up and left the room soon after, with Elora and Lucia following him.

**

The townspeople were busy with their usual activities, walking along the streets or browsing inside merchant stalls, when something entering through the city gate suddenly caught their attention. Some even stopped by the roadside to watch.

A large beast was making its way inside, each heavy step drawing more curious eyes.

The creature stood nearly twice the height of a person, its thick gray hide covered with natural armor along its shoulders and flanks.

Strapped across its back, just behind the shoulders, was a miniature palanquin. The small platform was covered with blue curtains and tassels, looking more suited for a royal procession than a beast casually walking through a frontier city still under reconstruction.

Lounging inside was an old man with pure white hair and a wide grin that seemed permanently fixed to his face. His clothes were mostly white, with deep blue along the collar, sleeves, and edges. The outfit was simple and elegant, without too many decorations, but the fine fabric and careful details made it obvious that it was expensive.

"Is that... is that actually a person up there?" someone in the crowd muttered.

"Look at the beast. Look at that collar. Do you have any idea what that thing is worth?"

"Isn't that..." A player near the front of the crowd suddenly went pale. "That's a Vesperion Guild emblem on the beast's saddle."

"No way. Vesperion?"

"That's not just any member either. Look at him. That's Midas."

"Midas? As in, the Midas? The guy who's so rich he could probably buy half the guilds in this game and still have gold left over?"

"I heard he once bought an entire auction house's inventory just to see what would happen to the prices the next day."

"He did. I was there. Prices didn't recover for a week."

Up in his little swaying palanquin, either unaware of the growing murmur below or simply unbothered by it, Midas threw his head back and laughed loud enough to make several people nearby turn and look.

"Hahaha! To think Siki would drag himself all the way out here of all places!" He gestured broadly with one hand, nearly knocking the fruit dish held by one of the two spirits beside him.

Both spirits had the appearance of young women with long flowing hair, one seated on either side of him inside the palanquin.

"That boy hasn't shown this much fire in his eyes in years! Years, I tell you! Not since that business with the Frostfall Wyrm, and even then he sulked about it for a month afterward when it turned out to be a waste of everyone's time!"

He took a long sip from the offered cup, smacking his lips appreciatively before continuing, apparently talking mostly to himself at this point, or perhaps to the spirits.

"For him to go and convince the Guild Master, of all people, to bring every last one of us all the way out here to this small city? Ho ho, now that's interesting. That's very interesting. Siki doesn't beg for anything, and yet here we all are."

He tapped a thoughtful finger against his chin. "This is going to be something big. I can feel it in my bones. My very old, very rich bones."

The beast plodded further into the city, drawing an ever-thickening trail of curious onlookers, and Midas barely seemed to notice, still muttering happily to himself.

"And that attack, the one everyone's still talking about! A Behemoth, of all things, tearing through the city just days ago!" He clicked his tongue.

"Absolutely criminal that I missed it. I could have made such a scene. Picture it, ho ho, the Great Midas descending from the heavens astride his loyal Grovemaw here, scattering gold coins across the battlefield while lesser men fought and bled! The attention alone would have been priceless!"

He sighed dramatically.

"And that prince! That silly little crybaby prince everyone keeps talking about!"

His grin widened even further. "Apparently he's gone and surrounded himself with the most gorgeous collection of maids anyone's ever seen. Ho ho ho! Well, I simply cannot allow that to stand unchallenged, now can I? I have my own collection, after all. My own beautiful, devoted spirits. It's only proper that we have a little competition, wouldn't you agree, girls?"

Both spirits giggled in unison.

Midas glanced toward the back of the palanquin, where a fourth figure sat almost completely transparent under an invisibility skill, with only a faint outline visible.

"Lazuli?" he said. "You've gone quiet on me again, haven't you."

The figure shifted and became a bit visible. A girl appeared, more solid than the other spirits but still translucent at the edges. She wore a fitted deep blue and black outfit with a high collar covering her lower face, leaving only her sharp eyes visible. Her bright green hair was tied in a high ponytail.

"Well now! Since it seems I already have such a wonderful audience!" He reached into a pouch at his hip and withdrew a fistful of coins. "Let's make this a proper welcome, shall we?"

He tossed the coins into the air, sending them scattering across the street. The reaction was immediate. Players and civilians rushed to grab them, laughing and shouting as even more coins followed.

"Tell every player you know! Midas has arrived in Necroton, and I intend to pour more gold into this city than it's ever seen in its entire miserable history! Hahaha! Come one, come all! There's plenty more where that came from!"

Coins kept falling. The crowd kept growing. And somewhere beneath the noise and the laughter and the ringing of gold against cobblestone, the green-haired girl in the corner of the palanquin simply watched it.