Chapter 150 - 150. Abort! Abort! Return To Base!

The glaring look that was given to me by Prius made me shudder a bit since I didn't know that the situation in the Southern Plains would be that great for the new adventurers to face.

Little did I realise that the lives of the members including our children would be placed in jeopardy since I haven't even venture far inside The Wastelands nor even close to the Southern Plains.

Even my last trip there didn't even have much impact for me to grind anything useful. "Is Level 5 adventurers able to handle the monsters there at all? I mean the beast would still be alright, right? Tell me more about the secrets of the Southern Plains and The Wasteland." I implored to Prius as he opened up his notepad that contained all the secrets and information he had collected so far during his childhood.

"Based on the information that I had gathered when I was young and when my father and brothers were still alive, the beasts that they encounter would be Common Rank. Unlike the Northern Forest, only the trolls and goblins would prove to be troublesome and not a threat to vanquish." Prius spoke up after he had made several comparisons on his notepad.

"The beasts in Southern Plains would be equal level to that of the members, and they have 3 kinds of immunity which is Fire, Frost and Poison. The monsters, however, are immune to binding spells and magical spells on top of the 3 that I had mentioned."

"There are 5 types of beasts and monsters and they come in the category as such: Common Rank, Elite Rank, Super Elite Rank, Chieftain Rank and Lord Rank. If the members are Level 5, then they would be facing level 5 beasts and monsters."

"However, their HP would be from 5k, 10k, 20k, 50k and 100k. For example, the wild boars on the Northern Plain are all 500 HP and could be dealt with 2 or 3 bolts. However, if one faces an Elite Rank the only significance would be their size, their HP and their aggressiveness. Furthermore, there would be a runic marking on the sides of their bodies or even their foreheads."

"That's the only distinguishing mark on their upper echelons based on their strengths and aggressiveness and these beasts and misters have at least 2 power skills and up to 5 at most. Each power skills would be in effect when their HP drops to a certain level or they enter a Rage mode."

"I hope that whatever information that I had given you would make you aware of the dangers that lurk in the South. Moreover, you had been in the outskirts and been there like an hour or so, which means you had not even scratched the surface of it."

"There are at least 5 dungeons and 10 respawn points for the Bosses out there and the only way for you is to be an overwatch for the members."

I pondered a while after Prius had finished speaking and I decided to go and have a look there to ensure that the members are handling the situation well. There is no point to pursue the Quests if the situation is out of hand and dangerous. Safety is more important and I decided to leave right after.

"Thanks for the tips, brother. I think I would better off leave now and forgo the lunch and all. I would be back shortly after." I explained to Prius and would be pulling them out of the situation is too dangerous and hard for them to complete the Quests.

"Alright Audemars, God Speed and take good care of yourself. I would be manning the operations here as usual and awaiting your return. Bring Pat along with you, she may be an assistance to you when the need arises." Prius advised and I quickly summoned Patricia and we both got into our battle gear.

Instead of bringing the light crossbow with me, I took an Assassin's compact crossbow instead and would be using it on my sub arm and my Victory claymore on my master arm. Before I left I reminded the interns in the kitchen to proceed what they were supposed to do as Patricia and I went out from the Castle grounds and headed South.

....

"This place hasn't changed a bit. The only difference is the addition to The Wastelands where your last battle took place. Do you happen to recall anything at this moment?" Patricia implored as I seemed to look right far away in the great distance.

"Not really dear, we got to find our children and the rest of the members first. We meet here in this boulder here in the Plains. I don't see any of the members in the Southern District so I'd guess they are all over this place right now." I beckoned as we split up and search for the rest of the members and assemble them over to the spot that I had pointed to.

A little while later as I walked among the Plains, I heard some rustling and when I turn around I saw Jane and Ingles were hiding in the shadows and bushes as they were observing the Desert War Bears in the distance.

"Hey guys, how are you been doing?" I greeted Ingles and Jane and they both looked up in surprise and ran towards us and hugged us as they had never seen us for months.

"Mummy... Daddy... What are you doing over here? How are things back in the Castle?" exclaimed Ingles as she hugged Patricia with her face all smudged up due to the number of days in the wild.

"Mummy is fine dear. Your Daddy is just concerned about you and the rest of the members. How are you getting along?" asked Patricia as both girls had released their embrace and looked at the both of us in question as they can't believe their eyes that we are right before them.

"These Desert War Bears are impossible to be killed. Our crossbow bolts are nearly impossible to penetrate through their tough armour hide."

"It is supposed to be our quest to gather its hide by one of the merchants but right now it had been more than 12 hours we had been shooting and running about. Not even one was able to be killed at the moment." Jane articulated and was at the breaking point of despair.

"Dear, I think we better call off and get everyone back to the Castle. We need to find the others and make this our grinding spot first to gain experience Points and for them to Level up. By the looks of things, even at their current Level 8, it would be quite impossible to handle things right now." Patricia advised and I nodded my head after pondering of this matter for some time.

"Alright, we retreat for now. Gather all the rest and abandon all Quests. There's no penalty in doing so and safety is the main priority. Furthermore, we have 36 other adventurers who are undergoing my quest so it would be another 2 days before they would complete it." I reckoned and the two girls nodded their heads.

"Daddy, the rest of the adventurers are in the Southern District and we are the only ones out here. I feel bad to abandon this quest but since you said safety is the main priority, I guess we have to abide for now," replied Ingles as she crouched to pick up her stuff and then we quickly left the spot.

These Desert War Bears have a keen sense of smell and much more acute than the normal bears that we could find in the wilderness. These beasts when tamed could be used as a mount or as a fighting companion as they already have a saddle and also equipped with various types of armour on their body.

These beasts were being used by Orcs during their battle to aid the dark elven in The Wastelands and since the Orcs had abandoned the majority of these beasts, it roamed wild in the Plains.

We quickly made it to the Southern District and waited at the town plaza while Ingles and Jane went to summon the rest to abandon their Quests and head back to the Castle. Even if we may lose rankings in the completion of Quests but at least we knew that the members and our children are safe.

It took quite a while to gather all the 24 members back to the town plaza and when everyone is assembled, they heaved a sigh of relief when I announce them to abandon their current Quests.

It proved that their current ability is not yet up to par to complete some of the Quests. As this took place in the South, the majority of the Quests are Battle Quests that require them to battle these beasts and monsters to achieve certain resources that they need to present to the quest master.

While the Quests in the North and Central can be considered as child's play, the South is really hardcore. We went for some ice cream sandwich to alleviate their spirits and once everyone got their share, we head back to the Central once more.

It seems that the majority of the members were dragging their feet due to the fatigue and hardship that they had been facing these few days. Although some easier Quests had been completed, the rest of the Quests had been marked as 4/5 stars in difficulty level.

Furthermore, since these adventurers had been newly resurfaced after being dormant for nearly a year and a half, it would take some months before it establishes itself again.

"Daddy, Daddy... Will we be going out to do the Quests again here in a few weeks time? It's a perfect place to grind but then the beasts don't drop many items." Kayla inquired as the Quests that she had picked were the easier ones.

"Let's hone your current skills first before we head out once more. This time, we would be heading to the Northern because there are a lot more places that we hadn't venture yet." I simply replied and everyone was delighted and their faces lit up with anticipation.

Level up is a must and to gain more experiences before they deal with the beasts and monsters in the South. Furthermore, they are anticipating to receive more Battle manoeuvres and tactics from me real soon.