MMORPG: Rise of the Primordial Godsmith

Chapter 1656 1656: A Short Reprieve

ʼSorry for not responding to any of your messages these past few months.ʼ

Seeing as his copies would take a while to forge the preliminary parts that would make up the snaplock firearms heʼd be making, Valyr decided to use the time he spent waiting to catch up with some people he hadnʼt talked to in a long time.

Namely, the Heavenbreaker War Squad.

ʼIʼve already asked a couple of people here and there about the situation in the frontlines,ʼ wrote the young man in a specific group chat, his expression showing a hint of remorse. ʼHopefully none of you guys were caught by it.ʼ

ʼ…Glad to see youʼve finally found the time to send a message back to us.ʼ

Waiting some time for the other side to respond, the young man eventually received a message from Hal, the tone in the latterʼs message dripping with sarcasm.

ʼI really do apologize,ʼ wrote Valyr in response, letting out a faint sigh as he bitterly smiled. ʼI was caught in a lot of stuff these past few months, so I wasnʼt really able to update you guys with what was going on.ʼ

ʼSure must be nice to work on a request from the empire without needing to head to the frontlines,ʼ Hal replied, causing the guilt the young man felt from not messaging them for a long time to intensify even further.

ʼCut it, will you, Hal?ʼ Thankfully, before his thoughts began to go on a downward spiral of negativity, Vera made her presence known by sending a message to their group chat, immediately reprimanding the man for his prior responses.

ʼItʼs not like weʼve been looking for the High Sovereignʼs whereabouts the entire time he was gone,ʼ she wrote, finally allowing Valyr to obtain a bit of reprieve. ʼPlus, considering our professions, weʼve also received a request from the empire as well.ʼ

ʼOh?ʼ Reading her response, the young man raised his eyebrow in curiosity. ʼBy we, do you mean you and Hal? Or does that also include the other two?ʼ

ʼJust me and Vera,ʼ replied Hal, finally messaging him like he did before. ʼHarold and Nerissa are still out in the frontlines, though thankfully they were away from it when the sudden ambush occurred.ʼ

Talking for a bit more, the three eventually caught up on what all of them were doing, with both Harold and Nerissa even popping into the group chat near the end of it all to do the same thing.

Briefly discussing each otherʼs whereabouts these past few months at first, the five of them soon shifted their conversation towards the sudden offense the orcs and elves mounted, only to then shift the topic once more to the mission the five of them accepted.

ʼAlthough weʼve begun to find a few early leads to the High Sovereignʼs whereabouts, itʼll take a while before we obtain some locations where the High Sovereign could actually be,ʼ wrote Harold, the others in the group chat remaining silent as he typed.

ʼHow long do you think it would take?ʼ asked Valyr, the gears in his mind turning as he briefly pondered over the other things he needed to do.

ʼAt the current rate, a year at least, two years at most,ʼ the man replied, giving the estimate a bit of thought before writing it down. ʼAnd thatʼs already with the militaryʼs intelligence and reconnaissance network allocating a good chunk of their manpower towards the entire thing.ʼ

ʼThen again, thatʼs only possible because of our position as special enlistments.ʼ

ʼSpeaking of special enlistments… have any of you already used the opportunities the military gave us?ʼ Recalling a certain memory as Haroldʼs message popped up on his screen, Hal decided to remind everyone else about it in the group chat.

Surprisingly, everyone else in the group chat responded no to the question.

ʼDidnʼt really have the need to use it,ʼ wrote Valyr, briefly thinking back to how heʼd spent the past 10 months or so. ʼThough, now that you mention it, I might use it to prepare for my ascension to Rank 5.ʼ

ʼHonestly surprised you havenʼt done it earlier,ʼ replied Vera, with Hal and the others voicing out their agreement. ʼPretty sure everyone else here aside from you has already ascended to Rank 5 at this point.ʼ

ʼSeriously?ʼ Valyr felt a bit of pressure at those words. ʼGuess I should ascend in a couple of days, then.ʼ

ʼAscend when youʼve reached the limits of how much you can improve yourself at your rank,ʼ wrote Hal in response to those words. ʼOf course, that limit is theoretically infinite, but you know what I mean.ʼ

ʼI know.ʼ The young man faintly nodded at those words, mulling over the things he needed to do to be considered ready to ascend to the final rank of mortality. ʼWouldnʼt have been the strongest during the Four Pillarsʼ Inheritance if I didnʼt do that.ʼ

ʼWouldʼve been better off not being reminded of that,ʼ replied Vera, which elicited a bit of a chuckle from the young man.

ʼAll jokes aside, keep me updated on the frontlines, as well as our mission to assassinate the High Sovereign.ʼ After briefly reminiscing with the two over their experiences at the inheritance a bit more, Valyr eventually decided to cap off their conversation.

ʼ…Oh, and also, I might have an improved version of arquebus ready for use in the near future.ʼ

ʼ…Hoh?ʼ Seeing that his last few words had caught the attention of the group, the young man decided to share a small bit of information with them, specifically the part where the upgraded arquebus could be armed in far less time.

Unexpectedly, that caused the four of them to ask him when the upgraded arquebus would become available for purchase or for use, which forced Valyr to eventually come up with a safe estimate of around three months from now.

ʼ…You definitely shot yourself in the foot there, my friend.ʼ Abruptly ending his conversation with Hal and the others by closing the screen he brought up, Ataraxiaʼs voice soon echoed in his mind through their connection.

ʼIʼve definitely got a bit too ahead of myself there.ʼ Valyr nodded in agreement, letting out a wry chuckle. ʼThen again, itʼs been a long while since Iʼve last talked with them.ʼ

ʼIt has been.ʼ His other self nodded in agreement, memories of the Four Pillarsʼ Inheritance surfacing in their minds.

ʼAnyways, since youʼve promised that those snaplock firearms are gonna be available three months from now, you better get working on the empireʼs request, then.ʼ

ʼ…Right.ʼ Valyr nodded once more, his attention on the various parts the production lines have forged during his chat.

ʼHopefully it wonʼt take too long.ʼ