The Achievement Junkie 279 A Friendly Wager with the Ninja

A part of Rydel was glad to face a challenge, but for the most part, he understood that the ninja completely outclassed him in terms of stealth. Rydel felt that he could search all day and still come up with nothing, forcing Rydel to gain more and more respect for the ninja.

Jack took a different approach. He stood atop the roof and shouted, "Hey Trax, how's Choron doing?"

There was no response.

"Are you looking for someone to fulfill his request?"

"Maybe."

Jack turned around to find Trax standing still behind him. With a laugh, Jack held out his hand again. "Well, I would like to accept that request. Can you take me to him?"

"I refuse," Trax scoffed. "I have specific orders to find a specific person. I can't see through you, but I'm sure that someone would've been able to find me in a heartbeat. You failed to do that much, so how could you ever fulfill the request of a god?"

"But didn't I easily find with only a few words? Come on, I'll surprise you for sure." Unfazed, Jack showed his confidence and kept his hand extended. "Who are you looking for, anyway? Maybe I've heard of him."

"Sure you have, but that doesn't mean you've met him or know where to find him," replied Trax. "If I told a low-leveled hero like you who I was searching for, then you'd just cower and hide from his strength."

"But aren't you just selling weapons to Prachten to increase the war effort? What has that got to do with finding someone?"

"To find the person I'm after, I need to get his attention. To do that, I was ordered to sell weapons to Trodar's enemies while not directly interfering with the war," explained Trax.

"That's strange since I'm the one who was sent here because you've been meddling with the war from the sidelines," stated Jack. "Who's to say that I'm not the one you were trying to attract?"

"Really?!" Trax burst into hysterical laughter. "You? They sent you? Why would they send someone so week?"

"Well, my level is within the terms of the war pact, for one. And two, because I have the backing of the Leisure Guild," as Jack chuckled he took out his emblem, catching the ninja off guard.

"You, a member of that legendary guild?!" Trax snatched the emblem from Jack's hands and examined it closely. "This… You must've stolen it."

"Or been given it by Tralon, the current guild leader and my personal friend."

Trax reluctantly returned the emblem to Jack, sizing up the man. "You… Is your name really Jack?"

"Yes."

"And what's your level?"

"I reached lv. 34 just a few weeks ago."

A long sigh left the ninja's mouth as he started to mumble to himself, "The name might work… But the level is way off… There's no way…"

While Trax was busy conversing with himself, Jack called Rydel back and opened up the map tab from his menu.

"Tell you what, Trax. How about you stop selling weapons to Prachten and you take me to Choron's hidden shrine? We'll let him determine whether I can do the quest or not," reasoned Jack.

"Impossible. I'm only allowed to bring him back."

"Then just stop selling weapons to Prachten and I'll go visit Choron myself."

Again, Trax broke out in laughter, "Very funny, but how could you ever find him or his shrine? That's impossible. It took me years of searching and investigating and, most importantly, luck to find that place."

"But the Churstin Canyon isn't too far from here. It wouldn't take that long, would it?"

That response shocked Trax to his core. "You… How do you know where to find Choron?"

Jack closed the menu and smiled, "Because I'm probably the one you're looking for."

"Impossible… Simply impossible!" Trax's mumbles escalated to shouts as Rydel joined them on the rooftop.

"Trax, does Choron have a contact crystal?" Jack asked.

"Maybe…"

"How about you call him and ask. If you want, I'll speak to him and prove you wrong," argued Jack. "I'd even bet on it."

"Not happening," scoffed the ninja. "Besides, there's no way you're the one I'm looking for."

Suddenly, the sound of rattling coins disrupted the conversation. Trax looked down to see a mountain of thick, well-crafted moneybags lying on the roof tiles, the types of coin purses used for carrying platinum or precious gems.

"I'll bet all of this that I'm the one you're looking for. Care to match me?"

Tempted by the odds he felt were in his favor, Trax took a calming deep breath. "Fine, I'll match you with these." A small mound of weapons appeared at the ninja's feet. "Do you dare accept?"

Jack's eyes were glued to the various weapons lying on the rooftop. Their levels were all over the place, but they were all mythic-tier and custom made for ancient heroes. With that many former belongings of ancient heroes, Jack could tomb raid to his heart's content.

"Deal!"

"Your loss!" Trax chuckled and finally shook Jack's still-extended hand. "I'll call him right now."

"Wait." Jack stopped the ninja from retrieving his contact crystal. "You aren't just going to kill me and run if you lose the bet, right?"

Trax stared at Jack, immediately understanding what type of player Jack was. The type he hated mast to bargain with. "If you're the guy I'm after, then Choron would kill me for killing you."

"But what if you just got back on the deal like we never made it, huh? What's stopping that from happening?" reasoned Jack. "How about you tell Choron about our bet before I talk to him. That way, he'll make sure the winner doesn't back out."

"You're crazy! How could I just--"

"You know, I can back out too," Jack stated. "I can call Tralon whenever I want and he can simply teleport to my location. I could just have him steal all of your weapons in the name of the Leisure Guild."

"The Leisure Guild is too noble to ever--"

"The Leisure Guild… noble?" Jack's sudden laughter made it hard for him to speak. "Listen, if you really know about my guild… then you should know it's anything but noble."

"I…" Trax restrained from saying more. Though the current Leisure Guild was more laid-back and respected as the longest-surviving guild, he was reminded of the guild's original reputation as the most shameless guild of any server.

"So, you'll tell Choron, right?"

"... Fine. I'll tell Choron before you speak with him." Irritated, Trax took out his contact crystal and spoke loudly, "My Lord, I've got something to tell you."

A moment of silence passed before Trax nodded. "Yes and no. I've found someone claiming to be sent from the Leisure Guild, but he doesn't fit the description or the requirements. But he had the audacity to claim that he was the one you were seeking, so much so that he wagered a dozen high-quality moneybags just to speak with you."

Trax nodded again. "Yes, I met his wager with the remaining custom items that you've given me."

After one last nod, Trax handed the contact crystal to Jack. "Your turn."

Jack snickered as he casually took the crystal. "Hey Choron, long time no see."

"Hmmm… What do you mean by those words? You've seen me before?" an aging voice responded.

"Of course! I was the one who stole your prized katana back in the good old days," Jack laughed loudly, causing Trax to frown heavily.

"You… What's your name? And what makes you so confident as to wager everything you own to speak with me?" asked the voice.

Jack continued laughing, "Oh, that's not even close to everything I own. I'm confident because I've stolen from you before and already know that your hiding beneath the Churstin Canyon. If your servant here hadn't chosen to take the wager, I would've gone and found you myself."

"You… And your name?"

"The name's Jack, but you'll know me better as Jack_J."

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Chapter end