Age of Adventure

Chapter 15: A NEW ERA

His steps were not as springy as when he left before. His face was full of exhaustion.

Aero has returned from hunting in a dungeon filled with gigantic snakes later than he expected.

It was one of the experiences in his life that he wants to forget. Thinking about it still makes him shudder.

Those slithering snakes still give him the chill with all the hissing that haunted his dreams and the feeling of the slimy moss in the dark and damp caves on his back.

But he must admit he also gains a lot in his hunting time. During these few days he leveled up to level 57.

None of his stats went up but his overall health and mana did increase.

It seems harder and harder to raise his stats now. Not to mention he can't use Divine Sword technique and Sacred Sword Finger technique as frequent as before

After leveling up those two skills he can no longer use it wily nily due to the high mana consumption.

Thankfully the Sword of Mars is by his side. In a way that Sword is one of his true treasures

Without it he would probably die trying to survive that dungeon.

After all while he did survive the dungeon to say that the dungeon is easy would be an understatement of the century.

Now finished dealing with that unpleasant experience he has returned to the palace to address the players and move to the plans he had made in his mind.

The moment he came to the area he was greeted by Marco and Arcturus greeting him politely as a sign of respect.

They slightly bowed down their heads.

They have already set the stage.

Now all he needs to do is convince players to join the war.

There are many incentives to join the war like gaining contribution points, increase relationship with the people and quest givers, looting the Orcs and money that they will make.

'But that is if we win' Aero thought in his head

If they lose, not only their items will be looted, some of them might be taken as prisoner of war until someone pay for them ransom or save them from their jail cells.

But considering that we are fighting Orcs I doubt that they take prisoners. When a player dies, he cannot login for one day.

And when he returns he will lose one level or two levels depending on the severity of their death and the way they died.

Until that one day is over, the player corpse will stay in the place that they died. Aero once saw a corpse of a man being eaten by Wind Vultures.

It was nauseating. But it adds the depths of realism in the game. But stop thinking about that.

What should I say to the players? What is it that they want? Aero thought of all the things he could plead towards the players.

They want glory. They want fame. They want their name to be known. To be recognized.

Isn't that the reason they play this game? They want recognition. They want an adventure.

What is more adventurous other than a war battling a massive horde of Orcs?

I knew how people mind works. Maybe not entirely but I know the basic need of humans especially those who played games.

They wanted to be famous, to boast to their friends, to adventure in an unknown world.

I need to appeal to this variety of emotions to invoke their motivation so they will desire joining the Army.

I need to make them feel unity and make them feel that by not taking part in saving this Kingdom, they are abandoning their honor and appeal to their desire for make believe.

RPG games are all make believe. Everyone wanted to be the Knight that saves the Princess. Everyone wanted to be the heroes that save the Kingdom. Everyone wanted to be a apart of a Great War between Good and Evil

I only need to paint the others, Vetten, invading Orcs as the Evil and Vanheim as the Good force.

And I mean what is a fantasy based adventure without a little war to spice up the adventures right?

Then it began as I walk slowly towards the staircase and climbs it slowly to arrive at the podium overlooking the large square below me

All I see is huge crowds looking in puzzlement and a hint of curiosity.

The trumpet players blew their horn, as the sounds echoes and make people pay attentions.

The drummers hit their drums like the sound of a thunderous roar that boils the blood of men.

The crier yelled his voice, his voice was shrieking but the desperation in his voice pleads to people hearts.

The streets began to get crowded as people of all walks of life gathered.

The crier announced my arrival to the people with some players quickly recognizing the name. I looked down from the balcony of the King residence.

Then I saw it. Outside the huge gate were thousands of players and NPCs gathered around the square in front of the palace.

Nervousness set in. I took a deep breath, close my eyes and release my breath. I open my eyes again and calmness sets in.

First I addressed them, my voice was steady and firm.

"Adventurers and the people of Vanheim. My name is Aero!' My voice resound, travelling all over the squares with the help of Roar skill.

Some adventurers knows me from the forum threads and was interested in knowing what I was about to say.

'There are some here who know me, and some who do not. I came here with a noble request. I was tasked with a great burden by the King. You all know what I'm talking about. The Orc Horde are coming as sure as night comes after day. I came here today in front of all of you to raise a volunteer army to fight this menace that is threatening our home and our loved ones';

Then I paused for a moment before continuing.

'I know some of you might think this is not your responsibility"

This is aimed at the adventurers.

They started listening. The chatter in the square quieted.

"If you think like that, think again. We were here. We trained here. We gained experience here. We have our world but when we're here this is our home. And right now our home is being attacked. Will you just sit and watch? Or will you fight? I am tasked to lead thirty thousand men to defend the Kingdom. That is not enough. You all damn well know that is not enough to protect our home. We all know what will happen to this country if we are conquered. Vanheim will cease to exist. I implore you. Join us."

At this point Aero heard some of the players say in the background, speaking in hushed tones to their friends

"He's right. I had a lot of good memories here'

"Well, if this Kingdom fall we have to migrate to other Kingdom and that doesn't mean they will accepts us"

"Why not join him. He seems sincere."

'I already started a chain quest and if the Kingdom falls, the reward would surely just gone with the wind'

They are also a few people who recognized Aero.

"He's that strategist from the crisis for the throne."

'Yeah, I thought I knew him from somewhere. He must have a wicked plan"

"Well, he's capable right? Wouldn't that be good? If we win we will get many benefits."

"But if we lose…"

There are people who are eager to join and there are also some that are hesitating to join. Now Aero need to appeal to the NPCs.

He continued his speech, his eyes scanning the crowd looking at their reactions..

"To all of you here, listening to my words, I say this; there is one thing we do know: that we are here for the sake of each other - above all for those upon whose smile and well-being our own happiness depends, and also for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy.'

His word combined with his earnest expression appeals to the NPCs in the crowd.

They were listening, and they were listening intently and carefully.

This is war.

To join….is not such an easy decisions. Life will be forfeited. For the adventurers it is a matter of benefits, a question of profit and loss but to the NPCs it is a question of life and death.

'Every day we must realize how much our own outer and inner life is built upon the labors of our fellow men, both living and dead, and how earnestly we must exert ourselves in order to give in return as much as we have received."

This part of the speech is to reel in the NPCs. This time he started with a loud voice to invoke the feeling of urgency.

"ALL MEN WILL DIE!! ALL MEN WILL BE CALLED UPON!!' And his shout jolted a few people who was shocked.

'But only a few, only a few special men, only those who have been worthy to answer the calling, are given the honor to die for a just cause. AND there is no nobler cause than this. In these times of chaos, all of us will be called on to make a sacrifice. When, or in what manner that sacrifice may be required, I don't know.'

'Look at your family, look at your loved ones, and look at the people you cherished and appreciate. Burn their faces on your mind.'

Some of the NPCs on the crowd look at the people beside them and grip their hands tighter.

Aero also saw this and continued his speech

'Why I ask all of you to do this? Because that who you are sacrificing your life for, shed your blood and sweat for.'

'All we can do is wait and prepare and pray that when our time comes, we will be ready to complete the task, so that when it is over, when we have done all we could, we might look to the people we love with pride in our hearts and the knowledge that we have put all of our efforts to protect their life and their smiles. I believe, with all of my hearts that these special men are all of you!!!'

The King's Square erupted to cheer. And Aero step down from the balcony and return inside the Palace.

People were lining up to register for the volunteer army. Aero sighed in relief. He was so nervous that he could not even see all those people lining up in the registration booth.

All Aero was thinking, please register. Please register.

Of course he couldn't show this side of him to other people.

Never show weakness. That is when the enemy would pounce in the dark corners where they waited

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Aero who was closing his eyes open it slowly and asked, trying to hide the nervousness that is in his heart.

"So how many registered?"

"Forty thousand recruits. Not bad for the first drive. And hey, that was good speech" Dan reply.

Aero only smiles. Well, never let it be said that Aero hates compliment

"Which means, now we have seventy thousand soldiers." Said Amy calculating

Aero look at Amy and he just wanted to tease her

'Didn't know you could count?'

Amy just shot him a glare and Aero pretend like he didn't say anything.

"Well, now our victory is guaranteed. With sixty thousand soldiers stationed at Fort Elken, combined with our army our soldiers numbered one hundred thirty thousand soldiers. That is a large army if I have to say it myself." Raina remarked

The requirement for registering to enter the war is level 70.

Aero made this requirement. Though Aero level itself is 57 but his stats are amazing enough to surpass even level 70 strength.

But the number is not one hundred thirty thousand soldiers, it's actually more. Not all of the players registered with the kingdom.

Some registered with Bradheim around the border. After all not every people of the Kingdom is on that square that day.

Bradheim also conduct his own recruitment drive on the border of his territory.

And players and NPC around that area trusted Bradheim more than they trusted the King in military matters.

And not all people are unable to see the shifting winds and feel the change. Some are just greedy and opportunistic.

Aero is strengthening the royal authority, and many nobles and scholars could see it. At least those that are wise and brilliant.

Right now the military power in the Kingdom is hold by two people. Duke Bradheim and King George.

Aero just hope that after the war those two will not wage war against each other which will make his job a lot harder than it is now.

So, Aero have another plan. If it works….it would make his job a whole lot easier. Because Aero knows there is no two tiger on the same forest.

One of them has to give way.

After confirming the numbers of soldiers in the register Aero then face the group and said

"We will not reinforce Fort Elken. We will go to Erda city"

Erda city is a medium size city just around the border of Vetten. It is a frontier against Vanheim for a long time.

From Aero words the group suddenly understand something. Aero is suspecting Vetten for the recent problem plaguing the Kingdom.

The reason is because Aero believes that the mastermind is some player from Vetten.

Why?

Because Veranis and Tian one of the closest kingdom around the border has neither motive nor benefit by weakening Vanheim, no matter how brittle Vanheim become.

If they do that, they will be threatened by Gerad or Niovar. Niovar on the other hand is too far from Nairhell to influence the players there.

So does Gerad Kingdom.

So the only one left, is Vetten who has motive to see Vanheim fall. Nairhell is south east of Vetten and they are adjacent geographically.

This makes it the only kingdom that has the probability to create this scheme. Everybody knows that Vetten was preparing their army during George absence.

But when George returned, Aero didn't hear anything about the army movement.

Of course Aero himself has no formal capacity to act in the King court but after the coronation of the King many NPC officials acknowledge the special position that Aero has made for himself in the King court and in the King heart.

Aero could be considered the most favorable advisor of the King

Naturally when he inquired about army movement of Vetten, there are people who would be willing to oblige.

Unless, that army moved to Nairhell and helped Gruk and at the same time struck a deal with them to attack Vanheim, Aero suddenly thought to himself.

'It is a brilliant strategy.' He muttered inaudibly

Nairhell will attack from the west and Vetten will attack from the south. It will be a two pronged attack.

'Right now Fort Vars is not as highly defended like Fort Elken.' Aero mumbled bringing the map of the area into his memories and his frown on his face deepened.

He slowly understands the plan. It is a simple plan but also very effective if people did not notice it.

'The main attack will happen at Fort Vars. From there they will conquer Zantleaf, then Derka and then they will reach the capital.' Aero finally understand.

It is simple but highly effective strategy. The capital will be surrounded and in a couple of days it will fall if Aero let them do as they pleases.

But this strategy will not be possible without the cooperation of Gruk.

Seventy thousand soldiers are not enough.

They will undoubtedly bring either two hundred thousand soldiers or three hundred thousand soldiers in this battle.

This is Aero conjecture.

"Why! Elken is the place we should go" object Dan who did not understand what Aero has just concluded in his mind.

Sighing and shaking his head Aero just said

"Trust me. The real threat is not the Orcs. It's someone else. And Dan? Don't forget. I am the brains of the groups and this operation"

Dan shut his mouth before nodding his head and then he said

"Who is this enemy then? And how will we explain this to Bradheim. He will think we have abandoned him to his fate in the Fort"

Aero just smiles that mystifying smile like everything is under his calculations.

"I have already sent letter to Duke Bradheim, Dan. So don't worry too much and stick with the plans….which is following my orders'

Dan rolled his eyes and nodded. Aero shakes his head

The reason Dan was so agitated was because the Duke is in Fort Vars and by not helping him, the Duke might rebel.

It is a reasonable worry and Aero shares that worries.

But he also has other plans. He also wanted to know the intention of the Duke. So, he sent a letter.

And with that letter he hopes to see what kind of man this Duke is. And what conclusion he should draw and what plans he had to draw after learning about the Duke.

Is he the valiant Lion of Vanheim or is he a hungry wolf? Dan was huffing in slight dissatisfaction. Aero notices this and he sighed and he approached Dan

After saying a few placating words Dan seems to be calmer.

'Now the distribution of soldiers. Dan will lead infantry soldiers and warrior type players with some healers in his rank. Raina will lead archers'

Aero ordered and put his people in charge of the army. He needs people who are truly loyal to him and who trust him enough to jump into fire for him.

Because what he will be doing later will not be easily understood unless you see the entire game board.

Amy will lead magicians and will be responsible for support and ranged attack.

Aero believe they can lead them but most importantly because he himself could trust them to cover his back and follow his order.

Aero did not want to promote NPCs or players he doesn't know to the position akin to a General around him.

Thankfully his influence with the King is high and even though he put his friend in charge of the majority of the army, the King approve without any complaints.

And the nobles could not even complain since the soldiers is now practically belongs to the Kingdom

Looking at his group Aero knows them well enough to know that they can do this. Sarah on the other hand has another task that is more important.

'It might even change the tide of battle in the crucial moment' Aero thought to himself.

Dan will lead twenty thousand soldiers and so will Amy and Raina. The only one who doesn't have any other class mixed in their division is Raina.

Raina is responsible for only the Archer Division. Aero himself will lead ten thousand soldiers who have variety of class.

"Now we march to Fort Vars." Aero said as he jump into his horse and rides it forward out from the city gate

Behind him, soldiers are marching

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VEVA KINGDOM

ZEUS CLAN CASTLE

THRONE ROOM

In Brave World the continent was originally referred as Vilajeri continent after it was united.

After the fall of Alain Empire the feudal lords turned into Kings, creating their own Kingdoms.

And they divided the Empire to five separate continents regardless of their geographically linked lands that interlocked each other.

On the Eastern continent there is Nairhell, Vanheim Kingdom, Vetten Kingdom, Niovar Kingdom, Veranis Kingdom, Gerad Stratocracy and Karak Federation.

On the North are Vor Kingdom, Veva Kingdom, Luna Kingdom, Saril Kingdom and Sol Queendom.

In the South there is Nero Republic, Vanan Federation and Zun Kingdom. On the Western side is Grata, Redat Kingdom, Jhaka Kingdom and Asgaro Kingdom.

And then there's the Central Continent which consisted of Duvar Kingdom, Alfhaim and Loth Kingdom.

All this kingdoms was once under the same banner, and there was only one continent under one rule.

The Warring period fragmented the Empire and created this absurd situation that made Kings declares their lands as separate continent.

Geographically they are not a separate continent but politically they are separate.

This has always been the case after the fragmentation. It was more a matter of politics rather than geography when discussing the five continents.

Zeus was looking at the huge map in his throne rooms, looking at the names of the Kingdoms that is present in the Continent with hungry eyes.

All his generals were there looking ferocious and gallant.

Tonight a new world is about to dawn in Veva kingdom and they have resolved themselves to follow the lead of Zeus.

The clan have decided to rebel and rule Veva Kingdom, Zeus as their leader and King. Zeus was never satisfied being only the Duke and everybody knows this.

With level 390 he is the strongest player in all of Brave World.

If he succeeds in his endeavor tonight, his name will be known throughout all of Brave World and further the image of invincibility he possess.

This plan of theirs is not rash or reckless.

They have been preparing for years, waiting patiently for the opportune moment. Now, they have gained the other nobles support and the optimum condition to rebel has appeared.

Zeus still remembers when he raised his contribution level to Nobility. After gaining that contribution title he was finally offered to become a Count.

From there he worked his way up to Duke with his military contribution winning battles after battles, pacifying the regions of Veva Kingdom.

Now with one of eight states of Veva Kingdom under his rule, he focused on the military development.

All the citizens of his domain are trained soldiers. The supplies for his citizens he got from Veva capital.

The King fearing that Zeus would rebel always fulfilled whatever wishes that Zeus had. Regarded as the protector of the Kingdom, every time war happened the Zeus Clan has always participated.

Zeus has always viewed the King as a weak King.

And weak King does not have the qualifications to order him around. But even though he thinks that, he never once express this thought openly not until he is sure of his victory.

He might be a reckless person but he is not entirely stupid.

Gaining the trust of the nobles and the people was all for this moment so he of course did not do anything to compromise the plan.

Their plan to attack in a month is cancelled after gaining the support from the nobles of the capitals so they moved up their schedule.

They will move at midnight. That was the plan. But Zeus after receiving new intel he call upon his general to discuss something.

Everyone already seems prepared and is impatient to spill blood and marches into battle.

"Should we move tonight, Zeus?" one of his general asked. It was Bart a close friend of Zeus.

He is six feet five tall, his blonde hair was neat and his body was muscly.

Wearing a Tiger Armor he looked especially ferocious. His eyebrows is thick but his face is slightly boyish.

Zeus shakes his head,

"No, Bart. We shall move at dawn. We will capture the capital and force that weak King to abdicate and give his throne to me."

"Well, if we move tonight we will take them by surprise, Zeus"

"Where's the fun in that Eric. I hope they fight us so I could show them my might' What he didn't say was that it is not the right time to attack.

There are some thing he could say, and some things he has to keep secret. Of course Eric and Bart did not know about Zeus though.

Eric was standing beside Bart looking at Zeus

Eric has always felt Zeus is a bit arrogant. Or is it confidence?

"Don't worry my friends. After we conquer this Kingdom, I will each give you title of Duke."

It's not like Eric and Bart follow Zeus to gain title though many of the other members followed him because of his promise of riches and fame.

And until now he didn't disappoint. But Eric knows how brittle a bond forged in benefit.

"There's only one question. Why do you want to conquer Veva? Other clans did not do this. Why do we need to use our wealth and resources to conquer this Kingdom?" asked Eric.

It's not like he didn't know. But Zeus has never spoken it openly.

Tonight is the perfect time to reveal his ambition.

Zeus smile understanding the intention of his friend as he addressed his generals.

"I intend to create a new era. An age of chaos and battles, of dominations. I see some people play this game only to go to vacation and fishing. There are also some who came to this world to paint and make cakes. I mean what's wrong with them? This world is filled with monsters and all they care about is this thing. War means progress. The new era where people can't just sit out of battles will be created by me. Only the strong will survive. I will create the era!" Zeus replied enthusiastically

Zeus is someone who is stubborn and opinionated. Eric and Bart have always known that personality and they have learned to try to ignore it

"Alright. But know this Zeus. I do this for you. Not for your convoluted ideas. What's wrong with people playing that way? But, I'll follow you. I promise you that' Bart said.

His eyes were looking straight at Zeus.

Eric has no words to say. He knows Zeus ambition a long time ago and he already has followed him.

"Hahahaha. Fine, Bart. Get ready then. It is not long now. A new era is about to dawn"

Zeus was looking at the beautiful scenery outside the window while waiting for dawn and he couldn't help but grin.

That dawn, a great fire ravaged the capital city and thunder cracked the sky as the Gods blessed Zeus and grant him victory over his enemies.

Zeus attacked the Capital city and bring it down to his feet

Veva…has a new King

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Here the chapter for today