Chapter 172 - The Valley Of Plenty.

"She hasn't been answering prayers recently, not even from her most faithful worshippers." The priest muttered, "However few that may be..."

"You said this started a couple of months ago?" Merlin asked, he seemed almost convinced that this had something to do with the shattered sky quest at this point.

"Yes, although it happened a little while after the goddess Despoina and her cultists went mad." The priest explained, "We were worried that it was going to be a similar case with the goddess Hecate, so we've been keeping a close eye on her most active worshippers, although it's clear to see that our worries were unfounded, so far."

"With that out of the way, I would like for us to move on to your next task. But first, please follow me." The priest said before taking a step outside of the room.

Merlin followed the man down the hallway and towards another room, this one being more rectangular in shape, especially when compared to the previous room.

The room that they had entered seemed to be a shared office space. There were several priests and bishops sitting around doing paperwork, not even sparing Merlin a glance.

The priest he was following took a seat at a free desk and immediately helped himself to the writing implements and stationery.

"Please, take a seat." The priest said while gesturing to one of the comfortable-looking sofa-like chairs next to the desk.

Merlin took a seat and waited while the priest seemed to be scribbling frantically on a note before stuffing it into an envelope and sealing it off with wax.

The priest stood up from the desk with the letter in hand, he quickly made his way over to Merlin, who was still currently seated, before handing him the envelope.

"Your next task will be in the village of Hysia, a small village just north of Macedonia." The priest explained, "Due to the city of Laconia falling to the undead invaders, we've been worried that the undead will continue to expand past the necropolis and ravage the rest of Arcadia."

"Fortunately, standing between our city and the Necropolis is the small village of Hysia. While the only thing standing between that village and the Necropolis is a large natural defence in the form of the valley of plenty." The priest continued, "But seeing as they're our first line of defence, we've set up an outpost within the village and have been assisting them with fending off the undead."

The priest explained a few more things before a quest window appeared before Merlin.

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[Common Quest]

Receiving Enlightenment II.

You've been tasked with journeying to the village of Hysia, a small village north of Macedonia that protects the town from any potential undead invasion.

You've also been given a letter, it seems the priest would like you to deliver it to someone within the town by the name of Archbishop Ferdinand.

Deliver the letter to Archbishop Ferdinand.

• Reward: +1 Wisdom

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Merlin stored the letter away in his inventory after accepting the quest.

After a few more moments of awkward silence, Merlin stood up and excused himself before quickly making his way out of the temple.

'Right, well I should probably get this over with.' He thought to himself while glancing at his stream chat window, noticing that a large group of his viewer base had left.

Merlin walked towards the northern gate this time around, a gate that he hadn't used in this town yet.

After giving his greetings to the town guards, his view opened up to a vast plain, with patches of forest scattered around the place. Merlin began his walk down the lonely path towards the village.

It didn't seem like this path received much travel nowadays. Nobody would go out of their way to visit a small village that was at risk of being swarmed by the undead without a purpose. This meant that besides the villagers who lived in Hysia and made trips to the city for work or supplies, only those affiliated with the temple ever really visited the place.

The path had a few small bridges built on it, they provided an effective way over the various streams that broke up the path as water made its way towards the large river that supplied the city with crops and fish.

Eventually, Merlin had arrived at the village, his journey was ultimately uneventful. But even if he was attacked, nothing at his current level posed any form of challenge.

Hysia was as Merlin expected, a quaint little village stationed at the base of a unique natural structure. The village seemed rather close-knit, at least that's how it seemed to Merlin from a distance.

After a few moments of wandering around the village, he noticed a group of individuals who seemed out of place. From their appearance, he assumed that they were members of the temple, and by following them he would quickly find the location of the temple's outpost.

As expected, he found the temple's outpost rather quickly, not that it would have taken him very long had he looked, as they were flying a very conspicuous banner, which featured a familiar-looking symbol in the form of a Vergina Sun, a sphere surrounded by sixteen long, triangular sun rays.

'Wasn't that the icon used by the thief lord?' Merlin thought to himself, 'He still uses his old job's resources to his benefit.'

He approached the building that was occupied by the temple's forces, but before he could enter, he was stopped by one of the few clerics acting as defence for the building.

"I'm a recruit of the temple. I've come here to see Archbishop Ferdinand." Merlin announced as he pulled the letter from his inventory and showed the guard the seal. "I have a letter for him."

"Right this way." One of the clerics said as he opened the door, letting Merlin inside.

Merlin was led up a flight of stairs, down a corridor and then into the office room of an older looking gentleman. Once Merlin was in the room, the guard who led him there had vanished back to his post.

"Archbishop Ferdinand I presume?" Merlin asked.

"You presume correct, how may I be of assistance?" The archbishop said while not sparing even a second to look at Merlin, the man was too entranced with his paperwork but still seemed as though he was ready to have a conversation.

"I'm just here to deliver this letter." Merlin took a few steps closer to the man's desk and placed the letter onto it.

Archbishop Ferdinand looked up from his work for the first time since Merlin entered the room, although his focus was locked on the letter, and not the one who had brought it.

The archbishop reached out and picked up the letter before swiftly slicing it open with a letter opener. The man read through the note's contents, and Merlin noticed his facial expression seemed to have brightened.

"She returned has she?" He muttered, "That's truly fortunate, that had me rather worried..."

'I suppose that's in relation to Hecate finally answering prayers again, although I'm not sure what would have caused her to return or even leave in the first place.' Merlin thought to himself

"So, you're loved by the gods of earth, nature, magic and the hunt?" The priest muttered out loud as his eyes finally locked onto Merlin, "That appearance... You don't seem to be a druid."

"No, I'm not a druid. Although many people seem to make that connection with me for some strange reason, I'm not so sure as to why." Merlin responded.

He remembered that Tuli had said something about the druids at some point in time too, although that was more so due to his vast knowledge of plants, or so he thought.

"No matter, it's just an unusual combination of gods." The archbishop shrugged. "I thank you for delivering this letter, this lifts a great burden from my shoulders."

「You have completed the quest, "Receiving Enlightenment II", rewards have been delivered.」

"Now, onto the next topic. From the letter, I've been tasked with providing the last part of your training, and as such, I would like you to showcase your abilities in a worthy environment." The archbishop said, "And it just so happens that the perfect opportunity has presented itself."

"We've received reports about a small group of undead wandering into the valley. We'll be sending a small force to cleanse them, and I'd like for you to be a participant in this mission." The archbishop said, "All you'll have to do is kill off a couple of undead, the rest of the team should be able to clean up the rest."

Once the archbishop stopped talking, a quest window appeared before Merlin.

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[Common Quest]

Receiving Enlightenment III.

You've been tasked with assisting the purge of undead that have wandered into the valley. You will journey into the valley alongside a small group of clerics and annihilate the enemy force.

To be recognised as a cleric, you must prove yourself worthy in the eyes of your peers.

Undead killed: 0/5

• Reward: +2 Wisdom, 250 EXP, Class Soul: Cleric

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