The Prince of Heaven's Gate - Last Stand At World's End

“You’re going to save your friends from a Kobold Bandit Group?” Randolph rubbed his chin. “That is not an easy task, my boy. Are you sure of this?”

Lux nodded. “Yes, Master. This is also why I would like to ask a favor from you.”

“Favor? Very well. What do you want from me?”

“Please, let me borrow the sword in your basement.”

Randolph’s casual expression immediately turned serious upon hearing Lux’s request. After accepting Lux as his apprentice, he had shown the latter his greatest creation, which was the Mythical Sword that he had kept hidden from everyone’s eyes.

In fact, this was the only Mythical Weapon in Leaf Village. No one knew about its existence except Lux, who had become Randolph’s apprentice.

“You want to borrow Blood Moon?” Randolph asked with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Yes, Master.” Lux bowed. “Please, let me borrow your Named Weapon.”

A minute of silence descended inside the smithy as Randolph gazed at his apprentice whose head had remained bowed.

“Even if I let you borrow it, your stats are not enough to wield it,” Randolph replied. “Blood Moon requires all of your stats to be at least fifty, which is impossible for anyone who is still here in Leaf Village. It is simply out of the question for you to use it with your current strength.”

Lux raised his head. “Master, I may not be able to wield it, but Diablo can. Please, let me borrow it to save my friends. I swear upon my name and honor that I will return it to you without fail.”

Randolph sighed as he leaned on the wall of his smithy.

“Without fail? I’ve heard that the leader of the Kobolds is a Rank Three Monster at its peak,” Randolph stated. “Even if Diablo can wield Blood Moon, he will still fall short against that Monster. Aside from that, the Kobold Chieftain has plenty of subordinates to back him up. My weapon alone will not be enough to turn the tide of battle.”

“Master, don’t worry about that. I have a plan.”

“Oh? Let me hear it then.”

Lux told Randolph that he had a way to locate the location of the Bandit Group. He added that the Riders of Norria were also riding for the Bandit Group. If he were to give them the information about where their headquarters were located, he would have many strong helpers to fight alongside him.

“This will certainly work, but there is just one problem, Lux,” Randolph stated. “You said that you have a way of finding their location, but will the Riders of Norria believe you?”

“… To be honest I don’t know.”_-.

“Then how about this? Once you convince Boreas, the Rider Captain, to take you with them, I will lend Blood Moon to you. This is the only way that I will allow you to take Blood Moon from my treasury.”

Lux nodded his head in understanding. “Understood. I will go and talk to Sir Boreas now.”

The Half-Elf didn’t even wait for Randolph’s reply and hurriedly left the Smithy to look for the Guard Captain.

When he arrived at the Rider’s temporary barracks, the riders were already mounted on their Goat mounts and were about to depart.

Lux saw the middle-aged man who had come to interrogate Helen earlier. He was already sitting on a goat mount beside Boreas. Clearly, if the middle-aged man managed to mobilize the Riders of Norria to help save Robin from the bandits, he was no ordinary Dwarf.

“Sir Boreas, please wait!” Lux ran towards the Rider Captain.

Several of the mounted riders blocked Lux’s path and drew their weapons towards him.

“Boy, we are on an important mission,” an annoyed looking dwarf said. “We don’t have time to listen to your nonsense.”

“That’s right,” another dwarf commented. “We have more pressing issues to address, and we obviously have no time to play with a Half-Elf.”

Lux ignored the two Dwarves as he shouted towards Boreas who was also looking in his direction.

“I know the location of the Bandit Group!” Lux shouted. “Take me with you and I’ll lead you to them!”

“You brat! Stop spouting nonsense!”

“That’s right. If you keep on interfering with our mission, don’t blame us for not being merciful!”

The two mounted Dwarfs that had stopped Lux from approaching their Captain raised their weapons in anger. They had always disliked everyone from other races and had long thought of Lux as an eyesore in Leaf Village.

If not for the fact that their Captain had ordered them to not harm the boy, they would have already taught him a lesson or two.

“Halt!”

A dignified shout stopped the two from hitting the Half-Elf who didn’t even make any effort to defend himself.

The two Dwarfs immediately ceased their hostilities and reluctantly lowered their weapons.

It was at that moment when Boreas, one of the Captains of Norria, urged his mount to walk towards Lux and eyed him from head to foot.

“Are you telling the truth?” Boreas asked. “This mission is of the utmost importance to us. Failure is not an option. If you are lying to us, I will make sure that you suffer a fate worse than death.”

Instead of answering them, Lux summoned his Elysium Compendium and opened its pages.

Immediately, a projection appeared in front of everyone showing them a map of Norria. In a place between the Village of Lindow and Village of Millwood village, a golden dot blinked on the map.

“Before my friends left to do their escort mission, I put a special tracking spell on them that allows me to know their location,” Lux answered. “I am not familiar with the topography of this land, but as you can see, I can pinpoint their location using my ability.

“If you don’t take me with you, the chances of you finding Robin are very slim. However, that will be solved if I come along. So, what do you think, Sir Boreas? Can you take me with you? I also want to save my friends.”

All the Dwarven Riders looked at their Captain and waited for his decision.

Boreas was the strongest Warrior in Leaf Village. He was a Grade B Apostle, which was equivalent to a Rank 3 Monster. With him around, their chances of winning against the Draconic Kobold would be higher.

“Understood, you can come with us,” Boreas answered. “However, if you are lying to us, I will make you regret it.”

Lux breathed a sigh of relief after hearing Boreas’ answer. With this, he would be able to borrow his Master’s Mythical Weapon to make Diablo more formidable.

“Sir Boreas, I have a favor to ask,” Lux said with a serious expression on his face. “Can you come with me to the Smithy and tell my Master, Randolph, that you will be taking me with you on your expedition. He said that he won’t allow me to go unless I get your permission to let me go with you.”

“You are Randolph’s apprentice?” Boreas widened his eyes in shock as he looked at the Half-Elf in disbelief. “That old coot actually accepted you as his apprentice? Is the world going to end?”

“Who are you calling old coot, you f*cker?!”

Randolph barged inside the barracks with a flushed face as he glared at the Rider Captain, Boreas.

“Bastard, since you are taking my apprentice with you, I expect you to bring him back safely!” Randolph shouted at Boreas, making the other Dwarf Riders look at the Blacksmith in disbelief.

Boreas was a very stern Dwarf, and not even their Commander dared to shout at him like the Blacksmith of Leaf Village was doing.

“I am not his nanny,” Boreas replied in an indifferent tone. “We’re not going on an excursion. If he can’t even protect himself then he should just stay here and play house with you.”

“Hmph! Fine. Since you want my apprentice to play house with me then so be it. Come, Lux. Let these eggheads handle this mission without you. Let’s see if they find that Robin brat on their own.”

Randolph didn’t even wait for Lux’s reply and dragged the Half-Elf away from the barracks.

“M-Master, I want to go and save my frie–”

“Hush! Let’s talk when we’re back in the Smithy. Don’t worry. Knowing Boreas, he will come knocking on my door sooner or later.”

Little did the Half-Elf know that Randolph was doing this for his sake. The Blacksmith wanted the Riders of Norria to officially ask his apprentice to be their guide, so that he would receive compensation from them.

Also, he didn’t have any plan to let the Dwarves see the Mythical Weapon in his possession. He needed to pass it to Lux secretly in order to avoid any future problems.

After the two arrived at the smithy, Randolph hurriedly locked the doors and made a gesture for Lux to follow him into the basement.

“I originally planned to bestow Blood Moon to a person that had the bearings of a hero,” Randolph grumbled. “Who would have thought that the first one who will wield it is not even a Dwarf, but a Skeleton?! Fate sure knows how to play with my heart.”

Lux endured Randolph’s ramblings until they arrived at his hidden treasure house, which was buried deep under the Smithy.

A few minutes later, the Master and apprentice pair arrived at a small altar where a sheathed sword was held on a silver pedestal.

It was Randolph’s greatest creation, the Mythical Sword, Blood Moon.

—–

Blood Moon

Weapon Type: One Handed Sword

Rarity: Mythical

Damage: 225 – 350

Requirement: All stats must be fifty or above.

Additional Requirement: Only those recognized by Randolph could wield this weapon.

Passive Skills: Sharp Blade, Swift Blade, Life Steal, Thorn, Indestructible

< Sharp Blade >

– The blade of this sword will always be sharp and will never dull.

—–

< Swift Blade >

– The sword feels very light which helps its wielder brandish it with ease. Able to strike very fast in quick successions.

—–

< Life Steal >

– Each attack heals the user with 5% of their Max Health Points.

—–

< Bleed >

– has a 5% chance to apply the Bleeding effect to your target with every strike.

– Bleeding effect reduces your target’s Health Points by 1% of its Maximum Health Points every 2 seconds.

– Bleed Effect Duration: 10 seconds.

—–

< Indestructible >

– This weapon is indestructible. It cannot be destroyed.

—–

The reason why Randolph decided to show Lux the mythical weapon in the first place was to encourage his apprentice to do better. He believed that once Lux realized how amazing being a Blacksmith was, the more serious the latter would be in his studies.

Although this was already Lux’s second time seeing Blood Moon, his admiration for the weapon never waned.

On the contrary, the more he looked at it, the more determined he became to increase the proficiency of his smithing skill, so that he would be able to create his own Mythical Weapon.

Randolph took the weapon from the pedestal with both hands before presenting it to Lux.

“Take it,” Randolph said. “Remember, I’m only loaning it to you for a short while. Go and save your friends and make sure that you return in one piece.”

Lux accepted the sword with both hands and looked at his Master with a grateful expression.

“Thank you, Master,” Lux replied. “I will not let you down.”

As he held the Mythical Weapon in his hand, Lux believed that once Diablo equipped this weapon, his Named Creature would be able to easily handle Rank 1 and 2 Monster with ease.

‘Wait for me, Colette,’ Lux thought as he gripped the sword firmly in his hands. ‘I am coming to save you guys!’

The adorable little Dwarf was Lux’s first friend in Leaf Village. Even without the help of the Riders of Norria, he would still do his best to go and save her, as well as the other members of the Goldenslayer Party.

Right now, Diablo was still unable to wield Blood Moon as he still needed to be upgraded one more time before he could do so.

Fortunately, Lux had acquired more than enough Beast Cores to upgrade his Named Creature. As the Half-Elf was about to return to the room in his inn to make preparations, Boreas appeared in Randolf’s Smithy to formally invite the Half-Elf to join them on their rescue mission.

An hour later, Lux, Helen, and the Riders of Norria, left Leaf Village together in haste. Their destination was the bandit hideout, which was located somewhere in the mountainous region between Lindow Village and Millwood Village.