Chapter 140: Anastacia

"It is nice to meet you too, Evergreen Guild Leader Anastacia. I am Equinox. A Summoner." Adrian replied.

"Although we serve the same church, I am sorry that I am just meeting you just now. I am Levin Cloud. A priest of the Church of Life just like you." Levin Cloud replied.

"Oh! I am happy to meet a fellow priest. Judging by the brooch that you are wearing, you must be a student of one of the elders like me. I am a student of Elder Sequoia. What about you?" Anastacia stated.

"Oh! I am a humble student of Elder Willow." Levin Cloud replied.

When Anastacia heard the name Elder Willow, she was stunned. She knew that Elder Willow rarely accepts students but is said to be the oldest of the elders. A High Elf that is revered for his great wisdom and intellect. He is currently one of the highest ranking Priest in the order but he apparently turned down the Pope position.

It is said that Elder Willow could turn a barren wasteland into a beautiful forest just by residing in it for a few weeks. It was all rumors but even rumors have a grain of truth. It was especially the case for this fantasy game at least.

"Forgive our guild leader for her expressionless face. She tends to not be expressive when it comes to her face. No wonder she is called the Ice Queen." Mariposa jokingly teased.

"Mariposa, you do not need to tell that to our guests. Even though it is true." Cersei also said in a teasing tone.

"Let us not dabble anymore. I hear you two are great so I want to extend a hand for both of you to join our guild. Cersei is implying that you two have bright futures and I trust the judgement of my comrades." Anastacia stated.

"You do not have to be too hasty, Guild Leader. They are still boys and are young. If you appear too tense then they will too as well." Cersei told Anastacia and after she winked at the two boys.

"Cersei is right, Guild Master. You should take the time and explain the benefits our guild can give them. You cannot just straight up tell them to join." Mariposa said with a slight giggle.

Adrian could easily see that the three have good relationship. Even if the guild leader was being teased, she did not even berate them. Adrian could now see why Evergreen is a top guild. Their guild is a close community and treat each other as friends. That is Adrian's observation for the higher-ups at least. He did observe some lower ranking members having immense respect for the members during the siege defense.

Adrian could also see that their guild was more democratic where the leader hears opinions from the other higher-ups. The guild leader also has immense trust towards her companions which is essential for groups.

"I am sorry for rushing. I will explain the benefits of joining our guild then. First, you will have assistance in leveling up. We host weekly leveling parties that is led by a professional in our guild. Second, if you encounter a quest of high difficulty or world changing quest then you will get monetary reward depending on the quest difficulty. The main rewards for that quest will also be yours but loots will be distributed to the guild. Third, if another group offends you and you are not the aggressor then the guild will have your back but you must be loyal to the guild. Other than those three, you are free to do so as you wish but must always be ready to be called upon by the guild." Anastacia stated.

The Evergreen guild is a lot more liberated than he imagined. It could also be due to the fact that a huge chunk of their guild members are based on the United States. It would make sense for people to want to explore the worlds in the game as it is massive. It was also good for a guild to not be too restrictive as it would hamper growth. Their weekly leveling party must be a way to practice as a group and build teamwork.

"The offer is very tempting but I am afraid I will decline." Levin Cloud said first which shocked the three Evergreen guild higher-ups.

"I am afraid I would also have to say no." Adrian said after his best friend declined.

The three do not want to push it further and be seen as overbearing so Anastacia asked the question.

"Can we at least know why you two declined? Our offer is very reasonable and you get more freedom than what other guilds offer." Anastacia asked.

"I am sure that you know my reason as we hail from the same church. Students of high church officials are very busy with a lot of stuff to do. I am sure that the time you used to meet us has already put a blow in your schedule." Levin Cloud stated.

"I can empathize with that as we have the same struggles at the very least." Anastacia said as she nodded.

"How about you then Equinox?" Anastacia asked as she turned her head towards Adrian.

"I am not available." Adrian stated in a nonchalant manner.

Cersei and Mariposa chuckled a little bit. Adrian's best friend laughed outright. Anastacia though was processing why her two guild mates laughed. Adrian then thought that he answered a bit awkwardly. It looked like he was telling a girl that is seducing him that he is already taken.

"Let me rephrase that as it sounded wrong. I cannot join because I have not thought about joining a guild just yet. Also if I join a guild, I want my friends to be there too. I will respectfully decline your offer." Adrian said as he bowed his head slightly.

Anastacia did not become mad or throw a fit of rage. She lightly smiled but immediately returned to her stoic face.

"I understand that you two do not want strings attached just yet. I guess you are in the young side and would want to play with your friends. Even though you two do not want to join us, I hope that you two would still have friendly relations with our guild." Anastacia stated.

"Well, I think being friends with a top guild is nice. I do not mind." Levin Cloud replied.

"I see no downside to being friends. So why not?" Adrian replied.

Mariposa and Anastacia registered the Adrian and Marlon as friends. The two then bid goodbye as Adrian told Marlon that they needed to talk.

When Adrian and Marlon left, the three women then discussed what they could not say in front of the two.

"So Mariposa, what do you think of them? Cersei already told me her opinion" Anastacia asked.

"It is a bummer that they do not want to join our guild but at least we showed them good will. I do not know about that elf priest boy but that summoner boy gives me chills." Mariposa replied.

"Interesting. Why do you say so?" Anastacia asked as she views Levin Cloud to be more valuable.

"My sixth sense is telling me that he is dangerous." Mariposa replied to which Cersei and Anastacia exclaimed their shock.

A sixth sense is normally not available to a normal race in Pandemonium but is available to two specific races. The races are the Selvaggian and the Hemipterrian. Selvaggian have a sixth sense because they are human and animal hybrids. The Hemipterrian are a bit different because they are a human and insect hybrid.

The two races would immediately gain a sixth sense when they are born. Mariposa belongs to the latter group and is a human and butterfly hybrid called Rhopalocera. She gained the sixth sense when she emerged from her cocoon.

"I also have the feeling that his gaze was piercing through my camouflage." Mariposa stated with a sigh.

"I did tell you that it was that boy who managed to identify the named undead that we fought during the siege defense." Cersei stated with confidence.

"Let us agree that that boy is not human." Mariposa said which caught Cersei and Anastacia's attention.

"If you are that sure about it then it must be true. I even used my ability called Clairvoyance but no information came to me. His status was all question marks aside from his name. I thought he was just hiding his information using a normal spell but it seems much more powerful than that." Anastacia stated as she sat on her chair and prompted the other two to sit down as well.

"It would make sense that the devil god that I am contracted with would not joke around about the boy. So what can you tell us about the elf priest boy? You are in the same order after all." Cersei said with a smile as she became more interested in Adrian.

"All I could tell you is that he has a powerful backer in this church. Much more powerful than mine if you think about it. He is probably not a simple priest because I heard that the student of Elder Willow managed to pass the test for becoming a Child of Gaea. They are treated as royalty by the Church of Life" Anastacia replied.

"It seems my sister's discerning eye has yet to fail." Mariposa said as she giggled a little.

Meanwhile in a restaurant in Neo Alfheim...

"What did you just say!?" Levin Cloud shouted.

"What? It's not a big deal." Adrian replied.