The guardian was not dead, but he was on the verge of it. So Cane decided to pull back, and his screen was suddenly filled with people calling him a coward.
It reaffirmed his theory that they could not see all the messages that the system was sending him.
He focused on the dialogue options he was given instead as he walked toward the guardian.
"It looks like it is my win."
Cane told the guardian, and the guardian gave him a startled look back from where he was lying.
"You are right. It is your win, warrior from outside. Since you defeated me, you have won the right to choose the reward you want from my list of rewards."
The system window appeared in front of him, and Cane immediately scrolled toward the Pain Numbing skill. That was all he wanted.
But before he clicked on it, he noticed the small 'info' icon on it, and he pressed it to check out the skill in more detail.
[Additional Skill: Pain Numbing. User is unable to feel pain. Caution: It can cause user to not know their limit and push past by accident, taking greater damage.]
[Additional Warning: Due to user's unique class, the full effect of Pain Numbing cannot be used. Max duration for use – 30 minutes. Recharge time – 1 hour.]
'What the hell is this skill description? Why does it have restrictions?'
Cane wanted to rage as soon as he read the description. The additional information had betrayed his expectations for this skill.
Downgrade? No, this skill was a complete scam for any player.
And yet, there was nothing else Cane could do but to take this skill and hope that it would be enough.
[Shura: Fuckkkkk… and here it is, the obvious downgrade of a skill.]
[LazyWriter: Our streamer is getting scammed in broad daylight, and he's falling for it?]
[BugControl: Kek~ what a fool. I will post this online.]
As expected, no one had noticed why Cane had to get this skill at all costs, and that was fine with him.
In fact, he preferred it over everyone knowing anyway.
He quickly selected the skill before the window went away and then helped the guardian up.
The guardian had recovered as well by now, and it pushed itself back to its feet.
"Come, I shall take you out of here."
The guardian helped Cane out of the dungeon, and on the other side waited the old man who had sent him there.
"Y-You are back alive?"
The old man NPC asked in a shocked voice as he pushed toward Cane. He turned Cane around as he checked up on him, and Cane felt himself tick at the behavior.
"What? Did you not want me to be alive? I told you that I am strong, right?"
Cane reminded the older male, and the NPC quickly took a few steps back as he raised his hands up.
"I know that. I was… just surprised, that's all. Now come and follow me. As promised, I will tell you more about the golden ball."
The man told him as he followed after him. The chat was going wild, wanting to know more about the old man as well.
But as soon as they exited the Valley of Nothingness, the old man turned to look at Cane.
"I apologize, but I would need to ask you to turn off any additional magic or enchantment you might have on you. Otherwise, we won't be able to start the journey ahead."
The old man told Cane, and he suddenly looked at the chat.
In Clash Online, all streaming was done through the enchantment stone that every player had. It was a common item, and even some NPCs had it.
And there were some places in the game that required all enchantments to be off. This location for the quest must be the same.
"Oops, looks like I can no longer continue to stream. I will tell you all about what happened later. For now, I hope you have a fun day."
Cane told his chat as they all continued to mourn his loss. Unfortunately, they had no choice in this matter as Cane finished his stead,
And then, he turned toward the old man, and they continued forward.
When his body passed a barrier, Cane felt it trying to repel him. But he pushed past it and entered a well-lit forest space.
A few houses were lining the periphery of the clearing, while the center was turned into a lush plaza.
"Welcome to our humble village, dear traveler. I hope you are able to find all the answers to your questions. Now come, I will take you to our chief."
The old man NPC told him, and they entered the biggest house around.
As soon as his eyes fell on the chief, he could not help but gasp.
'O-Oh-! I thought that the NPC I met was old, but the chief looks… ancient. Can he even move?'
The chief was all skin and bones, and it looked like he was barely hanging on. His body looked so weak that Cane even doubted that it could stand.
And yet, as soon as he entered, the old man opened his eyes to look at him.
"Chief, this young man here is someone who was able to pass our guardian's trial and come back safe. He also has the golden seed of our legend. He's here to receive our guidance."
The old man told his chief, and Cane waited around to see what would happen next.
The chief did not move, nor did his expression change. He just looked at Cane with the same intensity as before.
"I see… so you are a 'chosen one.' Can you show me your golden seed?"
He finally asked, his fragile hand coming forward to try and hold the seed in his palm.
Cane hesitated before he placed that seed in the outstretched hand. The old chief looked the seed over a few times before he placed it back in Cane's hand.
"This is a golden seed. Come, I will show you how you can grow it into a familiar."