Chapter 786 Order Headquarters 2
"Ehem- welcome to the Headquarters of the Order. I was assigned both to give you an introduction about this place, and to help you in the battle, but… I guess the latter was unnecessary."
After Daneel sent his message, he heard this statement coming from the newcomer whom he had mostly ignored until now.
The man had been terrified silly when he had seen Daneel simply look at the heart and make it stop beating, and it looked like he had started to believe that there was some unfathomable power which belonged to him that could not be estimated in any manner.
Well, it was to be expected, because the man had been thoroughly panicked when they had found themselves inside the body of the Shark. He had even begun to pray to the Heavens in desperation, so seeing the entire matter resolved in barely a moment using a method which seemed to be completely inconceivable must definitely have had quite a lot of effect on him, which had made him stay silent until now and finally speak up on seeing that it was time to fulfill his duty.
Even now, he did not seem completely normal, because he kept avoiding Daneel's gaze. He looked like he just wanted to get his job over with and then leave, and Daneel didn't really blame him.
So, folding his hands behind his back and trusting his commanders to raise a ruckus, too, Daneel nodded in order to encourage the newcomer to continue to speak.
Beside him, Eloise and Skrr were also very interested, and even though the latter was still munching on the last of the shark meat which had been in her hands when she had been teleported, she had been quite dazed by this entirely new place that she found herself in.
Seeing that he had all of their attention, the newcomer continued after clearing his throat again and taking a deep breath.
Waving his hand to envelop the entire area in front of them, he said, "Where we stand is the Marketplace, and above us is the Mission Area. Both of these, together, form the Headquarters, and all members only need to come here no matter what they want to do. Let's start with the Marketplace. Follow me."
It looked like it wasn't his first time taking up this duty, as the newcomer got into a groove after he started his explanation. Almost as if he had convinced himself that this was just a normal group with nothing out of the ordinary, he walked ahead without glancing back at least once and reached a shop which had a host of trinkets on display.
They were of all shapes and sizes: from little golden peas to large, human-sized capsules whose purpose Daneel couldn't fathom.
They were laid out neatly on a storefront that was made of ancient wood, and there were jade carvings to decorate the banner of the shop which read "Kanlan's Emporio".
The shopkeeper was a round man, and weirdly, he had long eyebrows which reached his neck. His mustache was also in the same style, causing a total of four distinct, knotted cords of hair to trail down his face, giving him a unique appearance that no one would be able to forget.
His expression reminded Daneel of eager salesmen back on Earth, and when he spoke, this impression only grew stronger.
"Welcome, welcome! I see good old Horton has decided to bring the newcomers assigned to him to my shop, again! This is the shop with the most variety in the entire Marketplace, and you would do well to begin your tour here! Life-saving trinkets, dream trinkets, pleasure trinkets, I have them all! Ladies, step right up to my special beauty section!"
Neither Eloise nor Skrr were really enticed by his words, and they even got strange expressions when the words 'pleasure trinkets' were said with a strange glint in his eye by the man. Skrr even moved back while continuing to munch, and Eloise frowned.
The man wasn't put off by their reactions, though, and he simply diverted his attention to Daneel.
"Well, hello, good sir! You seem like an up and coming member! Why wear those drab clothes? They might be fashionable in the Central Continent, but here, you would just seem like a country bumpkin! Switch them for special robes with life-saving formations!"
"All right, enough, Kanlan. I just wanted to show them a shop. Go attend to your other customers."
Two people had walked up to the store, too, so after seeing that Daneel was quickly getting an irritated expression on his face, the newcomer who had been called Horton hastily said this, causing the shopkeeper to smile and nod before walking away.
Indeed, the man had been testing Daneel's patience, so he simply looked at Horton.
With a gulp, he said, "Sorry about that, my friend tends to be enthusiastic. Still, this is a famous shop, and if you browse the items here, you'll get an idea about the Marketplace. Oh, crap, I didn't tell you the basic rules, right? Apologies, my mind is all over the place. Let me go over that first."
Just as he was about to launch into an explanation, the shopkeeper returned, and he was grumbling under his breath.
"Cheap f*cks. They think they can cheat me! Oh, you didn't even tell them this, yet? Let me spare them a long explanation. I have no idea why the higher-ups keep choosing you even though you suck at giving information concisely. Listen up, all of you."
These words made Horton grimace, but he held his tongue as the shopkeeper, whose entire demeanor had changed because of his mood, spoke.
"The Basics are simple. The Order was always meant to be a place where anyone from the Continent could grow stronger without worrying that they would be targeted by those more powerful than them when they were still weak. For that purpose, the Rules of Secrecy were implemented, and they have maintained the power of the Order for so long, while allowing newcomers to always be able to trust in it and join if they can. What the Rules boil down to are simple: All those under the realm of Heroes are the regular members of the Order, and it is to protect them, mainly, that the rules are in place. Even most of the rewards are catered to this demographic, because those are the realms where support is most vital, and where it can change the future of an individual. In the Hero realm, it mostly depends on oneself, with external help only mattering very little. For Champions and Warriors, though…obtaining the right support can do wonders, and lead one who might have been stuck as a Champion to overcome their boundaries and become a Hero. For this, both resources and experience are required, and that's where the Order comes in."
Daneel listened with interest, as even though he had seen some of what this man was saying in the rulebook, it hadn't been framed as concisely.
"The identities of regular members are always masked, even from the upper management of the Order. Only the Overseer knows who's who, and this information is guarded so well that there hasn't been a breach since the beginning of the Order. So, all those whom you might have talked to so far who know your real identity have all already forgotten it, so don't be surprised when they treat you like strangers the next time you meet."
Daneel's eyebrows rose as he heard this.
So that is why you said those words, Cain.
"The same applies also to your results in your test, which, if impressive enough, would have brought down attention from others upon you. This is also purged, so now, you're just a random member of the Order…until you start to take missions and perform, thereby amassing prestige. One of the purposes of the Order is motivation, so it is essential for members to know about and see others stronger than themselves so that they can push themselves forward. Of course, if you're dumb enough to let your identity slip, you're at fault, at least if this is to regular members. The Overseer won't step in, and you're basically doomed, so be careful. But if the higher-ups find out using the means that are available to them due to their power, the Overseer intervenes and erases those memories, and they are warned. In summary, do what you want and just pull out all of your hidden strength, if you have any, without worrying about consequences from those much stronger than you, and don't be dumb enough to give clues regarding your identity to those here. Got it?"
Daneel and Eloise both nodded right away, and the King had to admit that these rules were pretty effective.
He had been confused before regarding how secrecy could be maintained while still retaining memories about one's achievements, but it was all clear now. At first glance, there did not seem to be any loopholes, and Daneel really liked that.
"All right, enough! You say I'm not concise, but you drone on, too. In the Marketplace, you can buy and sell stuff, and you can either barter or use Ker Gems as currency. Now, let's get to the Mission area, and I can be done with this."
The shopkeeper looked surprised when he saw Horton say those words, but before he could say anything, the man had flown into the air, and Daneel, Eloise, and Skrr followed.
It was only then that they got a true understanding of just how big the place they were in was.
It wasn't too large, and that was natural as only the elite of the elite in the Continent were supposed to be able to gain access.
The entire area was barely the size of a football field from Earth, and at present, a few hundred people could be seen bustling around and going about their tasks. At most, the place could accommodate a few thousand people, but it was mostly empty now.
Daneel had no idea where they were, but the sky was the same as he had seen in the Hall of Beginning: it was a night sky filled with twinkling stars. Many obelisks were present all over, and in fact, there seemed to be as many people around these as there were below.
Each obelisk was three times the size of a normal man, and it looked like one could be used by three people from three different directions. They flew to one which was completely empty, and right as they reached it, a transparent display popped up that almost looked like a hologram from Earth.
"Welcome to the Order. Step forward to authorize yourself."
Gesturing to it, Horton said, "Here is where you might be spending most of your time. You can obtain missions, get rewards, check everything that you are eligible to obtain and also state any personal requests you might have, such as special training conditions, etc. Go ahead. That brings my duty to an end. It was…nice meeting you. Goodbye."
Horton practically fled after saying this, and as Daneel followed him with his eyes, he couldn't help but chuckle.
After that, though, with great interest, he stepped forward.
The display changed right away to show a prompt, but before he even read it, the system sent him a message that made him feel nostalgic.
[Data interface detected. Would-]
"Do it."
Long back, when he had gone to the library in Lanthanor, the system had given the same message, and he still remembered how startled he had been.
He had come a long way, though, and this became apparent in the next reply from the system.
[Personalized Inventory list of rewards found. Identifying relevant items according to parameters given. Sorting relevant items. Outputting list with objective and number of items found which fulfill that objective.
1. Accelerate speed of training to reach Peak Champion Level(3)
2. Find information regarding host's Master who has infiltrated the Church(2)
3. Obtain more information regarding the Order to find a way to take control of it(4)
4. Accelerate speed of training to reach the next realm for targets labeled as 'sovereigns' and 'allies'(12)
5. Increase capability of Central Continent to contend with the Church(6)
Points of Interest found.
Point of Interest 1: Some items in list of inventory match with items obtained from the third seal and Emperor Fenoras's memories. These are the base forms of those items. There is a probability that they were obtained by the Emperor and modified to be implemented in Angaria.
Point of Interest 2: Items in inventory also have rules attached to them. Some items have specific rules allowing them to be used in one's 'homeland'.
Final Point of Interest: All missions listed currently are within the capabilities of host.]