Book 8: Chapter 48: Epic Plot

“Our journey is dangerous; we might get attacked by some evil group!” Qin Lun’s smile stayed bright and easy as he asked, “How about you guys? What dangers might you face?”

“We…” Loier hesitated, “The dangers we might face aren’t entirely clear yet. But during the trip, some stretches might require travel through the underground world.”

“Drow Elf?!” Milleras’s pupils contracted slightly. He fell silent, quietly listening to Qin Lun and the dwarf’s conversation.

Among the four major elven races, Sun Elves and Moon Elves might compete for leadership. But against the Drow Elves, born from Dark Elves, they were mortal enemies, with absolutely no room for compromise. Anything that made the Drow suffer, Sun Elves would spare no effort to do.

In ancient times, the elves of the Tintagil Kingdom fled from the outer plane – Faeriel – and migrated to the Prime Material World – Faerûn. Of the four great elven branches, Moon Elves and Green Elves were gentle by nature. After experiencing the great destruction of planes, they craved peace and stability intensely.

However, the most powerful forces then, the Sun Elves and Dark Elves, launched five Crown Wars due to political and religious differences. Ultimately, the Dark Elves were driven down into the Underdark of the underground world, becoming the Drow. The original elven goddess Aelishina transformed into the current Spider Queen Lolth.

The Sun Elves, for destroying Maiyelita and Santa Osriel, earned the hatred of all Faerûn elves. The Vyshaantar Empire of that era was eventually destroyed by a united elven army. The High Council and royal family were wiped out. The remaining Sun Elves left the Supreme Forest, becoming the present-day Cormanthor Elves, lacking in ancient inheritance.

“Ha, you see? We all really need each other’s help,” Qin Lun chuckled softly, clapping his hands. He raised one finger. “Only one last question remains: do our journeys share any common path? We’re heading north next. And you?”

“We’re heading north too!” Loier breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. “May I ask your destination is…”

“Our next destination is Calimport, the capital of Calimshan. Then we head north all the way, crossing Calimshan, Tethyr, Amn, and so on,” Qin Lun replied, a faint gleam flashing in his eyes as he gently guided, “And you?”

“We’re going to the Silver Marches on the far northern edge of the continent!” Loier’s expression showed a touch of disappointment; the elves’ route only partially overlapped with theirs.

But on second thought, it made sense. The Silver Marches were already the far north of Faerûn, backed against the world’s spine. Apart from dwarves, few groups likely went that far north.

The others in Qin Lun’s group struggled to suppress laughter listening to Qin Lun and the old dwarf talk. Qin Lun told the truth, sure, but his words were largely bait enticing the dwarf.

The envoy group’s journey would encounter danger, but he hadn’t specified where that danger came from. The Zhentarim were indeed an evil organization, but ordinary folk rarely drew their ire. The old dwarf hadn’t prepared answers for Qin Lun’s questions ahead of time. While he instinctively avoided mentioning the Drow, speaking of the underground world naturally made others think of them!

The other question was similar. Traveling north from Calimshan meant Tethyr and Amn were unavoidable paths. These three nations were in the continent’s southwest, bordering the Endless Sea, lined up south to north along the Sword Coast.

Regarding the envoy group’s Ancient Path, Qin Lun had revealed less than half the journey. He mentioned a ‘next destination,’ not the ‘final destination’. Yet the dwarf was led to reveal theirs – the Silver Marches, the far north continent, with nowhere beyond.

“Silver Marches, World Spine, ruins of the Sannata Dwarves…” The old dwarf’s words echoed in Milleras’s ears. Suddenly, like lightning, a memory struck the Sun Elf Prince – something the tribal elders had once mentioned to him.

“Mithril Hall?! You’re trying to find Mithril Hall, right?” Milleras’s face flushed with excitement as he pointed at the old dwarf.

The dwarves’ faces darkened. Old Loier’s great beard bristled as he glared fiercely at Qin Lun. He saw it now – this silver-haired elf had been teasing out the truth all along. Looking back, Qin Lun only shared unimportant details, while his own information had poured out unchecked.

As the once most famous dwarven stronghold in the north, Mithril Hall’s name resonated like thunder. Mentioning the Silver Marches and the World Spine, how could elves not think of Mithril Hall?

“You? Where are you really going?” Loier ground his teeth, barely containing his anger.

Qin Lun smiled, spread his hands, and pointed at Milleras. He firmly closed his mouth. Milleras was the envoy group’s leader. Qin Lun had done his part. Whether the elves teamed up with the dwarves now rested with the Sun Elf Prince.

“We are bound for Deepwater City! Along the way, we must visit the major Elven Courts!” Unexpectedly, Milleras readily stated their final destination this time, clearly changing his mind and deciding to travel with the dwarves.

“Deepwater City?! So you were deceiving us just now!” The old dwarf’s face flushed darkly, and he shot Qin Lun another venomous glare.

“Hah, we do pass through Tethyr and Amn! That’s not a deception!” Milleras tried to smooth things over with a laugh, though he secretly gave Qin Lun a thumbs-up. “Now that everything’s out in the open, and we’ll journey together from here, let’s share our respective tasks!”

“Fine,” the old dwarf growled sulkily, turning his head away from Qin Lun, “But I don’t want to talk to him anymore.”

Qin Lun smiled, silently stepping further away to ease the old dwarf’s temper. Once their talk concluded, Milleras would share the details anyway. Besides, he could still indirectly participate through Stark and others during the discussion.

“Alright, alright. Firal won’t join the following discussion.” Milleras gave Qin Lun an apologetic glance. “But the mercenaries’ strength will be needed on this journey. Don’t you think their leader should stay for the discussion?”

“The mercenaries… their leader can stay!” Old Loier gave a heavy grunt, making it clear his mood hadn’t improved.

…

“Apostle 70053, you have triggered a hidden plot – Explore Mithril Hall. This branch quest belongs to the large Epic Plot ‘Mithril Hall’. The main plotline has not yet begun. You must complete this branch quest first, then accept the following task from the Warhammer Clan within the Toril World.”

“[Explore Mithril Hall (Temporary task difficulty unassessable): Shield Dwarf King Bruno Warhammer returned from Icewind Dale. Before the Warhammer Clan symbol, the ‘Foaming Mug’, he swore an oath to reclaim the pride of the dwarves – the Mithril Hall of the Northlands.

Answering King Bruno’s call, the Snowpeak Dwarves, descendants of Sarnatan, sent a scouting party. They sought a map leading to Mithril Hall within Ironstar Fortress, once a castle of the Sarnatan Empire. Then, they would head north to find the entrance to Mithril Hall beneath the World Spine.

Task Goal: Find the entrance to Mithril Hall and strive to explore its interior.

Task Reward: Rewards issued based on the Apostle’s displayed contribution within this task. Residence time will not be extended.

Special Reminder for Apostle: Slaying the legendary creature dwelling in Mithril Hall – the Shadow Dragon ‘Glimmer’ – or the Gray Dwarf King during this task will raise task evaluation by one level. Key advancement items up to Legendary Profession will be granted based on contribution.

Note: The main plotline of this Epic Plot is one year away in this timeline. Shattered Starry Sky will issue a ‘Special Space-Time Locator Sphere’ based on the Apostle team’s Exploration Rate.

Note: If, due to the Apostle’s Butterfly Effect, this Epic Plot occurs early or is delayed, Shattered Starry Sky will grant double the Exploration Rate as an extra reward based on circumstances.

Note: A branch quest of the ‘Mithril Hall’ main plotline, titled ‘Foaming Mug’, has already been accepted by another Apostle team. After The Lost United Team and The Fortress Team accept the ‘Explore Mithril Hall’ quest, they will form a competitive relationship with that team.]”

“No way, another massive task like that!” Qin Lun felt both amused and exasperated seeing the prompt in his Death Notice.

No wonder Shattered Starry Sky specifically reminded them that the Toril World was a newly opened Quest World. World Exploration was almost entirely uncharted. Just bumping into a group of dwarves stumbled into yet another Epic Quest.

Robin and Stark, who had been listening near Milleras and Loier, soon returned. Neither looked pleased about encountering an Epic Plot; instead, they seemed deeply troubled.

Milleras had already agreed to travel with the dwarves. The Sun Elf Prince felt problems were already abundant enough; what was one more? They already had the Zhentarim to worry about. As long as the dwarves didn’t impede the Ancient Path, and with Drow harassment thrown in, it seemed manageable. Perhaps switching to the underground world for certain sections might even help avoid Zhentarim assassins.

For the Apostles, however, this was worrisome. Though they’d seen the quest, Qin Lun wasn’t familiar with the specifics. Stark quickly summarized the earlier conversation for him.

Mithril Hall was the most famous dwarven castle in the Northlands, perhaps all Faerûn. It once served as the northern fortress of the ancient Sarnatan Empire. Centuries ago, it fell into the claws of a Shadow Dragon named Glimmer.

The Warhammer Clan dwarves dug too deep for mithril, weakening a planar node between the Material Plane and Shadow Plane. This accident freed Glimmer into Faerûn. Glimmer killed most of Mithril Hall’s dwarves and claimed its treasures, supported by a horde of shadow-monster servants and an entire tribe of Gray Dwarf subjects.

On principle, Apostles wouldn’t refuse such an Epic Quest. The problem lay inside Mithril Hall – a dragon. Not just a suspected legendary creature like the Gecko Colossus, but a living dragon. And this dragon wasn’t alone; it commanded a legion of shadow monsters and a tribe of Gray Dwarf followers.

“According to the intelligence the dwarves obtained from the Warhammer Clan, this Shadow Dragon Glimmer is at least a high-tier legendary creature, possibly even a demigod stepping into divinity. Robin believes this quest… Forget just us being unprepared. Even if the entire large teams, Lost and Sky Float, were here right now, it would be a tough battle with no guaranteed victory.”

Stark looked at Qin Lun with deeply troubled eyes, “So tell us… do we do it?”