Limited LuxeDeLore Event

~It is said that deep within the Midnight Forest is a familiar created by Calibash that is a complete copy of himself. A ghost of the past. You can receive a great reward from defeating him, but must battle through 3 lowly monsters before challenging the evil warlock. Do you have what it takes, oh brave warriors?~

MaxwellPippin is currently sorting through player requests from his guild MPB until he receives a message from LuxeDeLore.

“The quest of the Midnight Forest to defeat a ghost of Calibash, huh.” Max says after reading over the message. However, that’s all it says. He sends a response, ‘What about it?’ Even if he started a chat verbally, he knows Luxe won’t talk so this is the best way to communicate. Luxe is quick to respond,

‘I’m interested in defeating it, but the 3 monsters before it drain too much health and energy for me to fight Calibash immediately afterwards. Can I put in a request for aid?’

Max grumbles. He has prided himself in being able to satisfy every request he receives, so much so that he takes reviews and puts them on his personal website for other players to see, which is also where he posts said requests. That’s part of how he gained such a large following. This will be difficult.

-‘I’m sure you are well aware of how players feel about teaming up with you.’

-‘…so you think it will be pointless to try?’

-‘Not exactly, but don’t be surprised if no one offers help.’

-‘So you’ll do it then, thanks.’

Luxe ends the chat with that. “A person of few words indeed.” Max says with a sigh.

He has no reason to turn them down and posts a request that reads: Player LuxeDeLore is looking for up to 2 players to aide in defeating the Midnight Forest quest. The number of players wasn’t specified, but no doubt Luxe wants as few as possible.

However, almost 1 month passes with no takers. To add to Max’s frustration, Luxe has reached out twice a week to ask if anyone accepted the request, only to have him say No every time. Looking over the chat with the same comments repeated back and forth, Max starts to wonder if he’s seeing things.

“There has to be someone who is willing to help.” Max tries to think of how to solve this and then suddenly gets an idea. “She probably won't turn them down. I’m brilliant!” He lets out a laugh and sends Luxe a message, breaking their monotonous conversation,

-‘You should ask Flora Mae if she’d be willing to help. With her healing spells, you can beat it no problem. Plus she’s used to being with a legendary player and shouldn’t complain about the rewards.’

While doing other things, Max waits for Luxe to send a reply, but 20 minutes later there’s nothing beyond ‘...’.

He stares closely at the chat box to try and decipher it, “Does that mean they’re thinking about it? Or was that not a satisfying answer?” Max decides not to dwell on it and closes the chat. If Luxe wants something they will reach out.

********************

November 20th 2018

One evening when Hanabi and Seiji are spending time together, she receives a notification. She takes out her phone to see a message from LuxeDeLore in Starfight and instantly feels delighted. No other Legendary Players have reached out to her before. Well, except Queen, but that encounter is filled with bad memories, even if the end result was good.

“What was that?” Seiji asks.

“I got a message in Starfight!” Hanabi says with excitement. However, after reading the first line, she freezes. ‘Keep this a secret from Hargrave.’

“Really? Is it anything good?”

“No, looks like it's just spam.” Hanabi says with a nervous laugh.

“That figures.”

Hanabi decides to try and focus on their date, planning to read the rest when she gets home, but couldn’t get it off her mind. Seiji noticed she was acting strange and, thinking she wasn’t feeling well, suggested they go home for today.

Once Hanabi enters her room, she feels defeated. “Sorry, Seiji.”

She logs into Starfight to read the rest of the message:

‘Keep this a secret from Hargrave. I am in great need of an experienced healer to attempt the Midnight Forest quest against a familiar of Calibash. Will you use your power to help protect me? Also, keep this a secret from Hargrave.’

“They said it twice.” Though that doesn’t surprise her. The Legendary Players purposely avoid each other and they probably don’t want any of them to interfere. What’s surprising is that LuxeDeLore is even asking for help.

Hanabi has done this quest once before with Seiji. The initial 3 monsters were easy. The only difficult part was fighting Calibash. When they were finished, Seiji mentioned that without her help, he wouldn’t have defeated it. Hanabi giggles at the thought of his praise. She then shakes her head and gets back to the topic at hand.

-‘Sure I don’t mind helping. I did this once before with Hargrave. What time would be good?’

Like everyone else, Hanabi knows Luxe lives in France, though their true gender is unknown. Maybe by helping she’ll finally get to hear their voice too. She then gets a reply,

-‘I can go any time. You pick.’

Hanabi can't help finding them to be difficult already. They decide to meet the following Sunday at 12pm JP time, making it 5pm in France. However, as the days pass, and with no one to talk to about this, Hanabi gets nervous and winds up dragging someone with her.

November 25th 2018

Flora and RedShinobi are waiting by the Midnight Forest for Luxe.

“Why did it have to be me?” Ryuuji complains.

“They specifically asked me not to tell Seiji. I also don’t think Sun will be good with this, and Steve…”

“Is loud and annoying, I know.”

“I don’t think that at all!” Hanabi shouts.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell either of them.”

“...then yes he does bother me sometimes.”

Ryuuji can’t understand how he almost always becomes everyone’s only choice with some matters. It’s made worse by the fact that he currently lives with Seiji in a one bedroom apartment, so Ryuuji is at a cafe with a laptop instead.

Once Luxe arrives, they waste no time requesting communication and sending a message in a group chat.

-‘You brought someone else?’

“Sorry I thought…we could use all the help we could get!” Hanabi says.

-‘Fine. Just don’t interfere with the first 3 battles. Stay on the sidelines and don’t do anything. Especially you, ninja.’

Ryuuji is surprised by the comment Why am I the one being called out?

Start the quest to defeat ‘Ghost of Calibash’? Yes/No (Suggested level 155)

The three beasts leading to Calibash increase in level with each one. First up is a typical golem at level 85. This doesn’t have any special attacks, it simply has immense strength.

As requested, Hanabi and Ryuuji remain on the sidelines and watch as Luxe effortlessly defeats it within minutes. This wasn’t done with any skills or spells beyond ‘Flash Shot’ which they used to rush around the golem and attack until it was defeated. Not even its seemingly hard exterior could stop them.

Next up is a pair of pixies at level 105. Despite there being two enemies buzzing around at high speed, Luxe is able to attack and defend simultaneously as they continue to circle them, sustaining little damage. They fought pixies enough to be able to predict their movements and utilizes the spell ‘Pin Point Barrier’ which protects one single area. You must move one of your hands to the spot you want to protect using the mouse.

They continue to press the keys to attack and defend, move the mouse to activate the barrier, all while keeping up with the tiny targets with ease. Ryuuji begins to wonder how this is possible for one person. He thinks he would need at least 3 hands and perfect eyesight to accomplish that. He can’t help blurting out,

“Squid?”

“What are you talking about?” Hanabi asks.

“Sorry, it’s nothing.”

Hanabi and Ryuuji continue to talk through their mic, and Luxe is able to hear them as well, but strictly uses the chat box.

Once the pixies are defeated, they send a message:

-‘Flora, since Calibash appears immediately after defeating the third beast, I need you to heal me and restore my energy as quickly and as much as possible. Otherwise, don’t do anything unless my health is ¼ of what it normally is.’

“You don’t want any help against Calibash?” Hanabi asks.

-‘The only thing I need is healing. You stay out of this too, ninja.’

Ryuuji grumbles, What am I even doing here then?

The third beast is a dragonkin at level 125. This is the first they’ve seen Luxe struggle. The dragonkin has claws that reach a long range. So even if you dodge or sidestep, there’s a 99% chance of getting hit. Being a close range fighter, it’s a bad match.

As someone who now uses the same class, Ryuuji continues to observe in amazement at Luxe’s playstyle. They attack with various blades and, even if they break or are the one-time use type, Luxe swiftly reequips a new one. The blades don’t do much damage either, but at that speed, it adds up. Ryuuji lost count of how many were used. Your inventory increases as your level does, but you can also upgrade it yourself. Their’s seems near limitless.

Luxe has yet to use many skills yet either. Or more accurately, hasn’t been able to against the dragonkin’s attacks.

Initially distracted, Ryuuji is brought back after Luxe uses the skill ‘Times 8’ and defeats the dragonkin. As a result of the battle, their health is just over half of what it normally is, which is about the average during past attempts.

Just as warned, the area is engulfed in a black cloud, Calibash’s dark magic, and transports everyone to the final area. Hanabi wastes no time restoring magic energy and healing Luxe, using simple spells since they didn’t need much.

This familiar of Calibash has the same look, with long dark hair that flows in the wind, piercing blood red eyes, and a sinister smile, yet comes off as more terrifying than the original. It’s as if this contains all of his hatred. A being of true evil.

“You weren’t kidding, that was fast.”

Just as Ryuuji said that, the familiar attacks Luxe, instantly appearing from behind and stabbing them in the back. Calibash carries a wand typical of mages, but only the top half is normal, the bottom is a long, sharp sword.

Luxe turns to attack, but Calibash disappears in a cloud of smoke, laughing as he does so. He enjoys humiliating opponents and often fights dirty. He attempts to attack from behind again, but Luxe is able to defend themself with one blade and attack with another, dealing minimal damage. He then disappears again. Luxe sends a message:

-‘Brace yourselves for when he attempts to attack you.’

They state that matter of factly. Not that he might attack, it’s that he definitely will. Hanabi then suggests to Ryuuji,

“We should spread out. If he attacks both of us simultaneously it will only make things more difficult.”

“Then you stay here, I’ll move.”

As Ryuuji runs to a different side of the field, Calibash appears beside him. He tries to at least defend himself, knowing he won’t be able to attack in return, but instead Luxe throws 3 blades in his direction. This causes Calibash to reappear before them, engaging once more.

-‘You make a good distraction.’

“Gee thanks.” Ryuuji wants to complain more but his thoughts are more focused on Luxe having extra limbs. To attack, defend, and type all at once? Now that’s definitely impossible so he assumes they must be using some kind of voice chat to send messages.

Watching Luxe and Calibash exchange blows, Hanabi starts to feel anxious. She agreed to follow Luxe’s request to not take part unless necessary, but she doesn’t like simply sitting on the sidelines.

“This is so frustrating…”

As the battle continues, Luxe finally gains the upper hand and although they’re unable to physically attack, the blade gets close enough to be able to use the skill ‘Internal Slash’. As the name suggests, it cuts inside the enemy’s flesh as if stabbed.

Calibash blasts Luxe with a large amount of dark energy as he backs away. Then all of a sudden, there are 4 Calibash on the field, all laughing in the same manner. Initially stunned, Hanabi asks,

“What do you want us to do now??”

-‘Not sure, I never got this far.’

“Are you serious?!” Ryuuji shouts.

Hanabi and Ryuuji are attacked by one Calibash each, with Luxe attacked by two. Having done this before, Hanabi gives the orders,

“When he’s close to defeat, he creates copies based on the number of challengers. If you defeat the original, they disappear.”

“A copy of someone creating more copies? That’s ridiculous.” Ryuuji says.

-‘How can you tell which is the original?’

“There’s one key difference - the color of the blade on his staff. The copies are black while his is dark purple.”

Looking closely at all of them, Luxe notices RedShinobi is the unlucky one to get the original.

-‘Ninja, switch with me. You do have a speed skill right?’

“Don’t underestimate me. Whenever you’re ready.”

-‘Now!’

Both being rogues, they use their own special skills, with RedShinobi having ‘God Speed’ and Luxe ‘Flash Point’, they switch places and immediately engage. However, Ryuuji forgot Luxe was dealing with two opponents and he’s now right in the middle. He tries to parry their attacks, but it proves difficult.

“How were you able to handle this by yourself?”

-‘It’s called too much free time.’

“At least you admit it.” Ryuuji grunts as the attacks continue.

What initially started as supporting a Legendary Player, has now turned into an all out battle. Even Hanabi is struggling. She used the skill ‘Brave Warriors’ to strengthen Ryuuji’s and her own defense, but it only lasts so long. Hanabi is then hit with a blast of dark magic from one of the Calibash Ryuuji is fighting.

“I didn’t expect them to attack someone else. Sorry Flora!”

-‘Flora, are you alright?’

“I’m just fine.” Hanabi says in a deep tone.

However, Ryuuji recognizes that as her ‘upset voice’. He then sees her use a spell ‘Star Scurry’ in his direction. This sends sharp bundles of energy flying through the air, resulting in pushing both Calibash away from Ryuuji.

“That’s a new one.” Ryuuji says, surprised.

“I learned that after the tournament. One day I’ll give Queen a taste of her own nasty personality.”

Ryuuji assumes Hanabi plans to challenge her in the near future and is preparing offensive spells just for that. She may even have some weapons as well, though what a mage is able to wield is mostly limited to a staff. With her knowledge of the game, she would turn into a fierce opponent. I hope to never be her enemy again. Ryuuji thinks to himself as the two Calibash assault him once more.

Luxe then sends a message,

-‘Another Queen hater joins the club. Anyway, just a few more seconds and this will be over.’

Luxe stabs both sides of Calibash’s body and uses the skill ‘Times 8’ with one blade, and ‘Internal Slash’ with the other, dealing the final blow. All of the Calibash disappear into the ground as if they were made of smoke and they are left with a chilling message, “Congratulations…for now.” He always likes to remind people that he will never fully be gone. Besides the fact you can do these quests any number of times.

The rewards for beating the quest are 1.5 million meel and a rare amulet that specifically protects against Calibash’s dark magic. Luxe says they don’t need it, while Hanabi already has one, so Ryuuji decides to take it for himself. In regards to the meel, Hanabi and Ryuuji each receive 500,000 while Luxe gets the rest. The two are surprised they still received a decent amount, having done nothing until the end.

-‘Thanks for helping with my selfish request. I know I wouldn’t have been able to beat it without either of you.’

“I didn’t intend to lend a hand, though.” Ryuuji says.

“Was there something you wanted from this quest?” Hanabi asks.

-‘Just to say that I beat it. Peace my new friends, maybe I’ll see you around.’

Once the party is transported out of the forest, Luxe sends that message and leaves. Ryuuji assumes it’s all over until he suddenly hears Hanabi shouts.

“What is it now?!”

“I had a plan to try and get Luxe to speak, but I was so into the quest and forgot!” Hanabi then mumbles, “Seiji mentioned he knows their gender, but refuses to tell me anything.”

“S-sorry, I don’t know anything either.”

“Really?” Hanabi says in a suspecting manner.

“Maybe try asking Steve, he’s the one obsessed with the Legendary Players. Well, I’ll be leaving now. Later!”

“Wha–”

Ryuuji quickly logs out and shuts his laptop, not allowing Hanabi to say a word. He lets out a deep sigh. He may pay for that later, but if she continued to push for answers, there’s no guarantee he’d be able to keep his mouth shut. “The Legendary Players are nothing but trouble.” Ryuuji complains.

********************

A week after Max made the suggestion to Luxe, he received confirmation that the request was complete. He considered asking them to write a review, but decided to do it himself instead. Afterall, he doesn’t want something so simple like ‘it was good’ or anything like that. Max keeps the saying ‘a man of few words’ in his mind as he works on the review. After contemplating for close to an hour, he goes with:

‘The perfect person was provided to aid in my mission. Many thanks.’

Short, not too simple, with a weird twist. “Perfect!” Max posts it on his website and it wound up as one of his most viewed reviews. This is the first time a Legendary Player consulted him so he’s not surprised many regular players were interested in what they said. Although the MPB guild doesn’t need any extra publicity, he couldn’t resist taking advantage.

********************

Starfight Tips;

After defeating Calibash in the main story, several quests appear throughout the game world that contain a copy of himself. A few are available year round, with others being limited or you can’t attempt the quest again for a certain number of days. This applies regardless of whether you win or lose. The difficulty level varies, from 50 to the max level at the time.