Daewoon

[Daewoon]

Mwah ah hah!

Feasting and merriment,

wine, women and song!

I could ask for nothing more!

The most scrumptious

delicacies are all mine to

taste! And I'm not just talking about the food. Mwah ah hah!

I'm the king of the world!

Oh, a visitor?

I'm sorry, but I believe

you're an uninvited guest~

You'll have to forgive me

if I wish to spend my time with maidens as opposed to men.

No matter, a beauty is a beauty, whether or not I know her name.

Come and drink with me~

[

Sure...

But first, would you

take a look at this?

You carefully take

out the small, lucid

jewel that Arian gave

you and reveal it to

Daewoon's roving eyes.

Eh? Why that's...

I see now, Arian must

have sent you! Oh you

should have said so

at the very beginning~

My apologies~

Lately I've been attracting

all sorts of strange attention like some kind of teen celebrity. I've gotten used to being too careful in screening out the dangerous sort.

Now then.

Do you have any

idea what that jewel

you're holding actually is?

Oh...!

You must be much

smarter than I expected.

So tell me, what do you

understand about this jewel?

Mmm...?

Handy? If you truly

understood, I don't

think you'd describe this

jewel as merely 'handy.'

Really?

Mm. At least you

admit it. *Sigh*

...

A rather crass way

of speaking, but perhaps

you picked it up from Arian.

In any case, let me explain.

Didn't Arian tell you

anything? I appreciate

your honesty. And I don't

mind chatting a while, I much

prefer speaking to honest people rather than foolish know-it-alls.

That Sobbing Starlight

is no mere jewel. It is a key

item for unlocking some incredible power. I believe Metz happened to obtain a piece, though I am

unsure how...

Metz has asked me and

some other friends who

hold the fragments of the

Sobbing Starlight to entrust

them to someone worthy of

finding the power it leads to.

Of course, we all agreed

and now you're here for me

to judge whether or not you're

qualified for this task. Now,

are you ready for my test?

Ooh~

Such unbridled

enthusiasm usually

does more good than harm.

That's exactly what

I wanted to hear! That

kind of quiet and careful

confidence will help you

in the future, you'll see~

E...

Excuse me?

How can you be

so ridiculous at

at time like this?

Either mind your manners

or don't take this test at

all! *SLAP--!!*

Hmm. That kind of half-hearted

attitude won't get you very far on your adventures. Still, so long as you don't get overly negative, you should have a decent chance of surviving your challenges.

Now, Metz expects me to ask

some rather serious questions,

but that really isn't my style. For this test, why don't we just talk?

Just answer me honestly and

light heartedly, alright?

So...

Do you have a lot

of friends that you can

constantly party with?

Oh, that's great~!

To have many friends

is a priceless blessing.

Friends bring us joy and

aid when we find ourselves

suffering from difficulties.

Wouldn't you

agree that being

really close friends

with someone can be

a life long benefit?

Well, everybody

needs to be alone once

in a while. And there are

some battles you must

fight all on your own.

Also, if you never

deal with other people,

you may grow selfish or

needy. It's better to go

out and meet people,

don't you think?

You don't have any

friends at all? Well,

you better learn how

to get along with others

as soon as you can...!

Now, what's your opinion

on purposely getting lots

of monsters to follow you

around. I believe this is

called ''Mob Training...''

But...

Wouldn't that be really

rude to anyone else hunting

on that same map? I think

it would even interfere with

someone else's gameplay...

Perhaps you should try

to consider other people's

feelings. Mob Training seems

to only be good at getting other

people angry with you...

I do too!

Just the other day, I've

heard some ruffians boasting

of their mob training activities. But personally, I feel they were compensating for their own shortcomings.

Such behavior truly

bothers me. Although I have

spent years in developing an

unflappable personality, I find

myself irked when encountering

such troublemakers.

When you face obstacles

in your own training, never give in to weakness. Assert yourself and find the determination to overcome your tribulations with honor!

At least you're honest.

But let me say that I cannot

condone that sort of weak willed behavior. True strength can only

be found through honor.

Remember that.

In the face of overwhelming

odds, do not despair. After all, what is achievement if it is not earned without difficulty? The greater the challenge, the

greater the glory.

Even if you are having hard time,

try to take a firm stand.

One day, you will realise how strong you have become.

And...

Don't ever partake in

mob training again, okay?

Anyway, I'm sure you're

aware of the War of Emperium

in which mighty guilds all across Midgard battle for guild castle dominion. It's actually quite popular, really.

Now imagine that both of us

are in the midst of a heated guild war. The sounds of explosions and earth shaking magic spells are all we can hear. At any time, we can

be lost in that mindless chaos.

Finally, through incredible

good fortune, we manage to

infiltrate the enemy guild castle and reach their Emperium. If we destroy that Emperium, that castle will belong to our guild.

However...! This is

no ordinary Emperium!

It is a masterful sculpture

of a gorgeous Priestess!

Answer me, adventurer!

Would you still destroy it?!

Hmm. You have a truly

strong will. Then again,

perhaps you lack a true

appreciation for beauty.

Even in Emperium form, how

could you harm a Priestess?

perhaps you cannot appreciate

a Priestess's beauty in the

way that a man would.

Ah yes! I felt you would answer that way! We must cherish and protect what is beautiful in this world. I would never be able to harm a Priestess, even in

statue form...

Interesting...!

Although you cherish

the beauty of the Priestess,

your loyalty to your guild

proves stronger. A most

admirable attitude!

But yes, if it were

me, I would protect that

Priestess shaped Emperium

until the end of the guild war.

Mwah ah hah~!

While we're on the topic

of guilds, let me present

another guild related scenario. Let's say that you joined a very popular guild with many allies,

as well as formidable enemies.

Now, during one of your.

hunts, you happen to meet

a member of one of your enemy guilds. The two of you are the only people on that map. Suddenly, he finds himself in mortal danger!

This enemy guild member

begins to yell for help. Now,

would you give your enemy

the help that he needs?

Ah, you would help him!

Good, good. I'm glad to see

that you understand that such pettiness should not get in the way of doing what is good and right.

True, you're not really

obligated to help your

enemy. Besides, you may

hurt his feelings once he

realizes that he's had to

depend on his rival for help.

Even though he is

your enemy, I still

believe it's important

that you treat him with

respect. Where is your honor?

Well, there's one

last thing I want to

know about you. It's the

most important question

in the world once you

think about it.

......

Do you enjoy life?

I'm glad.

When you don't live

with zeal, it's easy to

forget your goals and your

purpose for living. Don't have

any? Then make some up.

I hope you always enjoy

life as much as you can.

As for me, I'm always happy

with my wine, women and song~

I understand.

People cannot be happy

all the time. Sometimes

it's easy to forget your

goals and purpose in life.

But you know what? If you

have just one dream, one goal

to strive towards, things shall get better. If you think you don't have dreams, look back to your past. What you remember may surprise you.

It's important to look forward,

but first you must find what is truly precious to you before you can define your happiness. That's why I think it's good to experience new things as well as reflect.

Now, what's precious to me?

Three things, actually...

Wine. Women. And song!

Though, if I had to rank them,

women would top that list.

Well, I must say that I've

grown quite fond of you. Of

course, it helps that we have so much in common. Mwah ah hah~!

It was an honor to meet you~

Oh yes! Your next test

examiner is Sir Jore, also

known as the Ghost of Al de Baran. Although he's always sick, he has great passion for his research.

Alright, then.

Good luck in

Al de Baran~!

It pains me to say this,

but I do not think you're

worthy of holding my fragment

of the Sobbing Starlight. But

I am willing to give you

another chance~

You know, after talking with

you for a while, I now feel fairly comfortable with leaving you this piece of the Sobbing Starlight. Somehow, I think you're strong enough to get all the pieces.

I hope you will pass the rest of the test

and acquire the power.

I wonder...

Someone should have

passed Arian's test by now.

I can't wait to see who was

actually able to impress him...

I couldn't be happier!

What more do I need?

Gourmet food, fine wine,

nubile women...!

I'm sorry, but

no price can make

me change my mind.

You... You've failed.

I'm sorry, friend.

Oh~! It's you!

It has been a while since

we last conversed. Now that

you've accessed the power

behind the Sobbing Starlight,

do you like it?

Ah, how great~!

Just remember that

power can be addictive.

Even if you don't agree,

it's still wise to avoid

greedy tendencies, yes?

Please make good use of

the power you have obtained.

I am counting on you to be

responsbile and to never lose

that smile on your face, okay?

Eh...?

That's quite a surprise.

Perhaps Metz didn't know

enough about it? Still, I'm

sorry to hear you don't like it.

But in the end, keep in mind

that you must have learned some great lesson from this experience. Anyway, please do your best to use the power responsibly, okay?

Hm...?

Weren't you on

your way to find

Sir Jore in Al de Baran?

Oh, having trouble

finding him, are you?

Well, he's fairly shy, but

I'm sure he's hiding some

place in that town.

Ah, I feel so...

Satiated. The food was

stupendous and the women

have been even more so.

Servants! Fan me please~

*Yawn...*

...z...z...Z....ZZzZZ