CHAPTER 30: CH 30: SECOND CHAMBER - PART 1

"Hey Joseph, have you seen the recent buzz in the Clash Online community? You should keep up with the news, or you might fall behind."

Joseph looked at his "friend" who spoke to him as he farmed. He had joined a temporary party that his guild had asked him to help level up. But since he was not someone who liked to socialize much, the atmosphere had been awkward so far.

So when he was suddenly addressed by someone, he stopped farming and paid attention.

"Recent buzz? Are you talking about that +20 weapon auction? I am interested in that, but I cannot use it because of my class."

He told the speaker, and the party member scoffed at his ignorance.

"That is old news, man. But the player who put that auction up—Cane... they say he has a ’unique’ class or such. There is also a stream of him going and doing never-before-discovered quests. Don’t you think this is suspicious?"

The party member asked Joseph, but he did not see much point in these talks.

If someone was good and lucky, then it was not hard to find new quests. Clash Online was an ever-evolving game, after all.

Still, he did feel a little curious to see what all this buzz was about, so he stopped farming and quit the game.

As soon as he opened his eyes in the real world, he opened Steam to check who Cane was.

The avatar looked not too flashy but not too plain. And the equipment was rather random on the character, not indicating their class.

But his sharp eyes and sense of skill picked up one crucial detail—most of these artifacts belonged to different classes and could not be equipped on the same person.

That made him even more curious, and he could not help but interact with the screen.

He prepared a donation and asked the question he wanted to.

[JosephOfficial: Hey man, I cannot help but notice that you are wearing artifacts from different classes on you. Is that something unique to your class?]

As soon as he sent that message, people went wild.

[Shura: Oh my God-! It’s JosephOfficial?]

[Bugcontrol: No way-! Is that really the ranked #1 player in our server?]

Joseph ignored those questions and paid attention to Cane on the screen. He wanted to know more about that person.

He had not believed in the rumors about a "unique" account until now. But it was clear to see at the moment—there was something different about the player avatar in front of him.

Cane paused on the screen as well before he chose to reply.

"It is something to do with my class. But I cannot tell you more about it, or that would ruin the surprise factor of my avatar."

Joseph thought that was unfortunate, but he did understand that for Cane, who was a streamer, his mystery might be a selling factor.

So he did not press hard.

Instead, he made another request.

[JosephOfficial: You are the one who put up that +20 Holy Sword for auction, right? Do you think you can level up another weapon to +20? Or was it a one-time thing?]

He asked, and Cane paused to think. Then, his eyes narrowed, and he replied.

"I may or may not be able to do that, depending on what you are offering me."

That was not a yes but not a no either. But to Joseph, it sounded like an offer for him to entice the streamer.

So he decided to bite the bait.

[JosephOfficial: If you are able to give me a +20 weapon of my choice, then I will agree to fulfill one wish of yours... provided it does not harm me. Do you want to make a deal?]

He asked, and Cane paused once more before he gave a reply.

"That is something... we can negotiate. But you will have to provide me with a weapon since I don’t have funds or means to get one. Also, we can discuss more later. You can contact me through my official channels."

That was almost as good as a yes, and Joseph decided to back off.

Mostly because the people in the chat were going wild. He did not want to cause the streamer more problems.

’What an interesting person. His confidence shows me that he knows what he is doing. But will he truly be able to enhance another weapon to +20?’

That remained to be seen. And Joseph was willing to wait and see.

________

While Joseph went offline, Cane could not help but clutch his chest. He had never gotten a message from someone that famous and well-respected.

The request did startle him, but if it was for such a person, then he was sure it would be fine. And as for that wish... he did have something he wanted to ask for in return.

His chat was going wild with spams, and he ignored them to face the journalist. The second chamber’s entry called out to them all.

"We still have a chance to back down. I don’t think things are as safe in the second chamber as they were in the first."

Lloyd spoke up while clutching his weapon. His expression was tight, and he looked not ready to continue.

But Paul just grabbed his hand with a huff and tugged him inside.

"Don’t worry too much. It is just a few monsters... well, maybe I spoke too soon."

Cane looked down at where Lloyd and Paul were looking, only to see a pit filled with monsters. They were the only ones in the room as well, and they seemed to be trying to protect whatever was down here.

"Oh well, looks like there is nothing much here. We should leave-"

The door closed behind them in a cliché manner, and they were locked in there. Their only source of exit seemed to be clearing this place and then hoping that the door would open to let them out.

The alternative was to try and break free... which was definitely the last choice to make.