Chapter 258: Hero Badge

Bright light passed through the wooden window on the stone wall, illuminating the tables and chairs placed casually in the room. Perhaps they were neat at first, but with the guests' increasingly reckless movements due to drunkenness, they soon lost their original appearance.

"Three, three, three, it's really three, hurry, hurry, give me the money!

"

The tavern guests playing poker together often made excited shouts. They were playing 21 points now.

This was a new emerging way of playing passed down from other continents. Suke, the owner of the Happy Wild Boar Tavern, noticed its popularity at the first time, prepared some props early, read the rules, and opened a gambling table. His attendant played the role of the dealer.

At this time, the owner was far from realizing how much wealth this thing would bring to the tavern. Now, all he wanted was customers and the profit from selling drinks.

Therefore, Suke didn't pay too much attention to that gambling table, but looked at a table in the southeast corner of the room, where two of his acquaintances were sitting, one of whom could even be said to be a prominent figure in Zendar.

"I met Gayev when I was exploring ruins near Sharpster. I think you should also know that place. The village elder mentioned to me that a group of mercenaries saved their village. I heard the description and thought it should be the good deed you did. Not everyone is willing to help others without charging a reward."

Hearing the name Sharpster from Tacias's mouth, Allen and Momucha looked at each other, nodded slightly, and acquiesced to Tacias's statement.

Allen was naturally familiar with this place. He killed a whole team of Druid soldiers there and obtained a large amount of wealth and a gem shining with electric light, called "Sky's Favor."

"I originally got a clue saying that there were treasures and wealth left by former heroes in that ruin, so I took the team to explore. However, it was clear that I was a step late. If I'm not mistaken, it should be you who took away the treasure there, right?"

Tacias, who was speaking, looked down at the Star Horn in his hand. There was no annoyance on his face, but instead, there was a look of curiosity and lingering fear.

"I found that a large number of corpses were left there, and even troll bones. If it were me, I would likely die in the hands of such terrifying monsters, and it would also implicate my friends and subordinates. Mentioning these, I'm afraid I have to thank you. I think you must have experienced an incredible battle, right?"

Facing the young man's question, Allen didn't deny that he obtained the treasure, but he didn't mention the battle too much, just briefly described the situation at the time, and told Tacias that the Star Horn in his hand was indeed obtained from that ruin.

"That's right. I think Gayev was also looking for treasure, but he didn't run into you, but seized the opportunity to bewitch me. Perhaps because of the Hero Badge, he misunderstood that I was the legendary hero."

Saying this, Tacias took off the Golden Badge and pushed it in front of Allen, saying again in a reminiscent tone: "This badge was a trophy I accidentally obtained after defeating a team of Sea Raiders. Count Arassis told me that this was a treasure once worn by the God King Lion. It's just that after this encounter, I think its owner should be you."

After saying these words, a relaxed look appeared on Tacias's face. Since getting this badge, he felt that the burden on his shoulders was very heavy.

The Count told him that this badge might be a summons of disaster, but the five kings on this continent didn't care about the warnings they gave at all, either indulging in hunting and banquets or thinking of ways to provoke wars with neighboring countries.

Tacias felt that if this continued, this continent would sooner or later be finished, and he himself was controlled in thought by the enemy casually. If it weren't for Lord Allen happening to run into him, perhaps believing in the Dark Lord would be his final fate.

Now, this fair-haired youth already had the idea of quitting. Since there was someone more suitable than himself, why bother to bear this responsibility with difficulty? Perhaps being a partner beside a hero was also a good choice, and he could also contribute his part to the safety of this continent.

Looking at the Golden Badge pushed in front of him, a playful expression appeared on Allen's face. This plot development was something he hadn't expected.

Allen had thought that he might be able to become this young man's teacher, military advisor, or ally, helping Tacias grow up as an elder, and resisting the invasion of the Druid Sect with him in the future, until the continent returned to stability.

This was also a matter of no choice, who let him take away the Star Horn that originally belonged to the protagonist, as well as the three gems with special powers. Relying on Tacias alone, I'm afraid he couldn't do anything, and could only watch the war rise and be powerless.

But directly becoming the protagonist and taking on the task of saving the world was a path Allen had never thought of, because relative to this script, his current identity would not be recognized by certain existences.

For Allen himself, it was even more so. This identity would sooner or later be abandoned and exchanged for some soldiers or something.

Unless, in this world, Allen also became a king of a country.

"There is no need to be depressed because of the enemy's cunning. Perhaps in our era, there are no heroes at all, or perhaps everyone can become a hero. Why do you have to give up this opportunity to leave your name in the long river of time?"

As he spoke, Allen picked up the Hero Badge on the table and put it back on Tacias's chest, even if the system gave a prompt.

【Hero Badge: This golden badge engraved with ancient characters faintly emits a mysterious luster. It has the effect of increasing the wearer's charm and can arouse the subordinates' desire to fight, making their morale higher. If you collect five gems, you can unlock power comparable to gods.】

【Consuming the Hero Badge, you can more easily control the abilities obtained through gems. At the same time, after consuming five gems, it will change your life form and become a higher-level existence.】

"My ultimate goal has never been to drive away those believers of the Dark Lord. They just lit a fire for this chaotic continent. Driving them away won't solve any problems. My idea is to end the division of the continent and establish a country without war where everyone can live stably. This is the true end of chaos. If you are willing, you can come to help me."

As he spoke, Allen had finished his work, firmly put the golden badge on Tacias's chest, and patted the young man's shoulder.

"If you are willing, you can come to help me."

Allen doing this naturally had his own concerns. Regardless of Tacias's thoughts, since this golden badge had been sent to this young man's hands, it was heaven's will in the dark.

This continent, like Middle-earth, had gods, and they were different from those Valar who stayed in Valinor and didn't care about things. The gods here had their own ideas, and Allen couldn't guarantee whether he was favored.

Although Allen himself also obtained a part of the powerful power belonging to this world, those were basically obtained through his own efforts.

Even that Fire Stone was a trophy Allen obtained by chasing away Gayev with one sword and rescuing Tacias. In his view, this was something obtained through normal channels, and even those gods were afraid they couldn't object.

As for the Golden Badge in front of him, Allen had some concerns. On the one hand, he didn't want to easily take the trophy belonging to this young man from Tacias's hands like this. This didn't fit his character.

Unmerited rewards are not accepted, or rather, Allen felt that his help to Tacias was not worth the value of the Golden Badge, which was unfair to the young man in front of him.

On the other hand, Allen was also worried that after he took the Golden Badge like this, some dissatisfied god would whisper in his ear when he was sleeping at night. Who could stand that?

Therefore, Allen finally chose to return the Golden Badge to Tacias. After all, after solving the Druid Sect matter, he still had plenty of opportunities to exchange for this medal with territory, wealth, or even everything Tacias wanted, rather than the current situation of taking advantage of others' precariousness.

As for the invitation to Tacias, Allen was also sincere. On this continent, there were not many excellent subordinates he could find, and now this identity was not a descendant of any noble, so there was no foundation provided by the family.

Therefore, no matter from which aspect, Tacias, this young man, was a good choice for Allen.

Things can be temporarily not wanted, but Allen still wanted them.

And Tacias, who came from a civilian family, didn't have such a grand goal as Allen. At the very least, he didn't have it now. Destroying the Druid Sect's plan was Tacias's biggest goal at this time.

"If you don't mind, I am naturally willing to follow you."

Touching the badge on his chest, Tacias stood up excitedly. Allen's reputation in the entire Zendar city was extremely high, and his reputation was also very good.

As an upright and kind-hearted young man, Tacias was naturally willing to follow such a leader. What's more, with Allen taking on the task of saving the world, the burden on his shoulders was much lighter. At the very least, he no longer needed to worry about whether his decisions would harm his friends and subordinates.

It was just that Tacias, who was born humble, didn't understand noble etiquette, nor did he know whether he should kneel or salute when swearing allegiance, so he was stunned in place for a while.

Allen stood up immediately and pressed the excited young man back into his seat. This was a tavern with many people and mixed eyes, and it was Count Arassis's territory. He couldn't perform an allegiance ceremony here. He didn't even have a village now.

"Don't be so excited. We are just ordinary mercenaries now, neither noble nor particular."

After saying this, Allen picked up the ceramic wine pot beside him and poured a glass of wine for Tacias. If possible, Allen would never choose beer. In his view, that stuff was neither good to drink nor bloated.

"Your name has been praised from Jelkala of Rhodok to Wercheg of Nord. This is not something ordinary mercenaries can do. What's more, I have seen your strength with my own eyes. Now, I just want to know what your next plan is? Are you going to hunt down the increasingly numerous Dark Knights on the continent?"

Allen didn't go to hunt down those Dark Knights who were becoming active on the continent because of Tacias's flattery. Now there were other more important things to do.

"No, no, no, now is not the time to hunt these dark believers. Tacias, I need you to do one thing tomorrow, a thing that is very, very important for both you and me?"

Hearing that there was an important task, Tacias's eyes lit up. Compared to making decisions himself, he actually liked this feeling more now. Someone pointed out the direction, and he only needed to complete it. Doing this kind of thing was much simpler.

"What thing, I'll go prepare immediately."

"I have already prepared the necessary items. You only need to pass back and forth on the bridge outside Zendar. When any abnormal situation occurs, you don't need to panic, just answer the questions according to your heart. Believe me, this is not difficult to complete."

Hearing Allen's answer, the confused expression on Tacias's face became even more serious.

Early the next morning, a cavalry team of more than a hundred people appeared on a stone bridge a few dozen kilometers west of Zendar.

This bridge across the You River connecting the Kingdom of Vaegirs and the Kingdom of Nord had no relevant records of when it was built, but the residents living around it, as well as the merchant caravans traveling between the two places, all knew one thing.

That is, for hundreds of years, no matter how rushing and fierce the water of the You River was, this historic stone bridge had never had any problems, and there had been no records of repairs until now. Everyone said that the stone bridge had the protection of gods.

And this cavalry team of more than a hundred people seemed to be testing the sturdiness of this bridge, going back and forth between the two banks of the You River from morning to afternoon. This was already several times.

Some passing merchant caravans even put on a posture of facing the enemy. Their leader thought that these mercenaries were investigating the situation and might launch an attack on the merchant caravan at any time because of the goods on the carriage.

And this situation continued until a "plop" sound, an iron shield tied to the saddle suddenly slipped and fell into the river water, and the cavalry team occupying the bridge stopped their steps.

Subsequently, the light of gold and silver merging shone on the rushing river surface, gradually forming a slowly rotating whirlpool. This scene, which could be called a miracle, instantly attracted the attention of everyone present.

And a fair-haired woman in white with a hazy face rose slowly from the whirlpool. She held a golden shield and a silver shield in her hands and said to the dumbfounded Tacias.

"Excuse me, is the shield you dropped this golden shield, or this silver shield?" ===== CHAPTER 259 =====