<h4>Chapter 135: Hello there, Fellow Guilders! (Part 1)</h4>


    Fight and heal. Engage inbat and then patch wounds. <i>And so on, and so on.</i> That would be their routine for the next half hour.


    Even though they walked without rest, the swamp seemed to stretch infinitely. For a moment, some of the participants thought they had been stranded in a foreignnd for real.


    <i>But no. This is all a simtion within a simtion.</i>


    Nichs knew it was only a matter of time before a more dangerous monster appeared, sent by whoever was in charge of the scenario. <i>After all, this is also a show. I imagine thement section must be flooded with people demanding more action.</i>


    Nichs checked the current state of the group. Just five minutes earlier, they had been attacked by another pack of murderous frogs called Hopsters, which had eliminated five more participants.


    Amid the chaos, some demanded to be healed, while others ignored the pleas, hoping to conserve their mana, despite points being awarded for helping allies.


    <i>One would think that a group of 30 healers would be practically immortal, but no. That would be the case if there wasn''t a prize on the line.</i>


    "This isn''t working," a man in his early twenties said, halting. The healers leading the group stopped in their tracks and turned back, ring at him.


    <i>Such hostility is due to the fact that we haven''t advanced the quest, and suddenly this guy demands our attention. He better say something useful or be ostracized for the rest of the event.</i>


    "What? Do you have something to say?" the female Field Medic asked in a raspy voice. "Be quick and spit it out."


    The male healer, d in tinum armor and a white cape—currently stained with mud—looked around and then up. The foliage of the trees made it impossible to see the night sky.


    "Is there someone with flying familiars here, so we can send them to scan the terrain? If we don''t identify locations of interest, we''ll continue marching around in circles forever."


    Nichs examined the man''s outfit. <i>A Pdin... God, I really detest those. Even if this isn''t a Role yer like that wacko over there, they still seem morally superior. As if donning that cape messes with their head or something. I won''t help for now. I''ve done enough for a while.</i>


    Nichs watched the score visible only to him, which stated he had 100 points for healing others, before turning his attention back to the group.


    "I could send my Hydrolon," the shaman, master of the giant water wasp said, pointing at it with his thumb. "But it''s not an eagle, so its long-range vision might not be great. It''s good at detecting nearby threats, though."


    "Noted," the Pdin said, nodding, before turning around. "Anyone else? We''ll need at least two more familiars."


    "Why do we need that many, pretty boy?" the Medic asked, stepping into his personal space.


    The Pdin smiled mildly. "To corroborate what everyone sees. Just in case someone lies."


    The female healer thought about it for a moment and shrugged. "Sure. Why not? I could send a drone. But it''s of cheap quality, so it has average visual range."


    "Good. I''ll send my dove Familiar then. Let me call it."


    <i>What a surprise! I knew this guy was nothing but a walking stereotype.</i>


    Nichs snickered loudly, which did not go unnoticed by the Pdin.


    The group waited as preparations were made. Even their surroundings seemed to be holding their breath, maintaining a serene but eerie silence.


    The elemental wasp, the electronic drone, and the recently summoned white dove took off, navigating through the hundreds of pointy gray branches blocking their way upward.


    "It''s taking a while," the Medicmented, her gaze obscured by goggles.


    "This is a fake swamp. It wouldn''t surprise me if this ce had 300-foot trees," the shaman replied, his eyes shut.


    "Heads up. I can see the moon already," the Pdin said.


    They managed to hover and fly above the tree line and got to work immediately. The swamp was vast; they could even swear it was as vast as the city hosting the event. It was nothing but a densebyrinthposed of thousands of tall trees. After taking note of anything remotely out of the ordinary, they ordered their Familiars and drone to automatically descend.


    "A mile from here, northwest, there is a hill with a very suspicious rock formation," the Pdin was the first to report, then chuckled. "It''s practically begging us to check it out."


    "I also found a small ind in the center of ake, 1.5 miles from our current position, northeast," the Medic said while taking off her goggles. "It''s the only thing that stands out in this stinky ce, besides the rock formation. Looks like a cool ce to visit," she murmured in a dry voice.


    The Shaman exhaled. "Which leaves me with delivering the bad news. My wasp detected tworge auras nearby. A pair of bosses, most likely."


    "Well, there you have it, folks," the Pdin spoke, making eye contact with everyone. "Two destinies await us. I bet we''ll find the two lost NPCs there. That sums it all up, doesn''t it?"


    Murmurs and whispers spread among the twenty-five participants. Nichs could even swear he could discern them starting to split into groups. <i>I still have my theory, though! By the end of this, there will be three primary search groups.</i>


    "Whoever wants to check theke, follow me. I''ll guide you," the Medic was the first to make a move, and after a few seconds of uncertainty, some followed her.


    The correct assumption was that the Pdin would offer to lead the way to the rock formation, but half a minuteter, he seemed to have fallen into stubborn silence.


    The shaman took the opportunity to speak, as if the judge panel were awarding points for leadership skills. "To the rock formation! Those who want to go,e this way! My Hydrolon will guide us from above!"


    Nichs, just like a few others, remained still. He exchanged nces with the rest, who were frowning or sending suspicious looks at the Pdin. <i>Yeah, they also noticed it. The Pdin isn''t making a move in either direction...</i>


    The sound of wood cracking alerted them. Then, something akin to a whistle.


    "It''s here! A boss is here!" the Medic said from her position, 100 feet away.


    "On your guard, everyone!" another male voice said.


    <i>That''s the shaman. Surely ambushed by another enemy.</i>


    Battle cries and cries of agony were heard immediately from the two opposite directions. That was the exact moment the Pdin began sprinting in a straight line.