“Lord Ricks, should I go and dispose of them?” Kate asked tentatively, looking at the pensive Ricks.
Ricks snapped out of his thoughts. Instead of agreeing immediately, he looked up, swept his gaze over Kate, and asked, “Do you know how strong they are?”
He knew that Windhaven Town had powerhouses above Gold Rank. Perhaps this was a smoke screen intentionally put up by the other party to catch all of them, the spying vampires, in one fell swoop.
After all, he had always sent blood thralls to keep an eye on the people of Windhaven Town. With the ability of those low-level blood thralls to conceal their presence, they had probably been discovered long ago.
If Kate went there rashly on his own, he would likely fall into their trap and be captured.
“Uh... well...” Kate was instantly at a loss for words. “Their methods of concealing their presence are very advanced. I don't know their exact strength.”
“Foolish,” Ricks said flatly. “Kate, you have followed me for so long, yet you are still not cautious enough in your actions.”
He glanced at Kate, thought for two seconds, and changed the subject. “Do you know where Elys is?”
“Elys?” Kate blanked for a moment, then realized. “Are you talking about that necromancer?”
He was somewhat puzzled, but still said:
“There was news a few days ago that he was staying in the nearby Blackwater Town. An undead resurrection incident occurred there, and the Church of Dawn sent several priests to handle it. There has been no news since, so they probably... met their end at his hands.”
Then Kate realized something, his eyes brightening slightly. “Lord Ricks, do you mean to have him do this?”
Ricks nodded slightly. “Yes. With his strength, he can easily capture the people sent by Windhaven Town alive. I wouldn't feel at ease if you went. If it's a trap, and they intentionally sent a few people to lure us out, you might not return.”
Hearing this, Kate broke out in a cold sweat. Such a possibility indeed existed.
Ricks paused. “It's different if we let Elys go. With his methods as a necromancer, even if it is a trap, he can retreat safely. If it isn't a trap, it would naturally be best if he can capture that group.”
Kate was somewhat doubtful. “But, Lord Ricks, will Elys agree? If we hire him, his appetite won't be small.”
Ricks said indifferently, “He will definitely agree. Hasn't he always been obsessed with our Bloodrace's secret arts? We can just trade some of our lesser Bloodrace secret arts that we look down upon with him.”
“Yes.”
Kate bowed to receive the order, turned, and quickly left the dungeon.
The cell door closed again. In the dim light, the brown-haired girl slowly raised her head.
She had heard every single word of the conversation just now.
She gripped the tattered hem of her clothes, her nails digging deep into her palms, her heart twisting into a knot.
Lilith, and everyone in Windhaven Town... you must be careful...
The girl closed her eyes, praying repeatedly in her heart.
...
Starfall Forest.
Player Town.
The sky had completely darkened.
Twilight slowly spread from the east, enveloping the entire forest in a warm gloom.
But the town was a completely different scene.
After a day of main quests, the players were already exhausted.
In the open space in front of the Temple Square, bonfires were lit one after another. The dancing orange flames dispelled the slight chill of the night.
Countless players sat in small groups. Laughter, banter, and the sizzling sound of roasting meat intertwined, making the scene as lively as a grand outdoor carnival.
The exhaustion of grinding bosses and chasing low-health monsters during the day vanished completely in the face of delicious food and lively atmosphere.
“Let me tell you, when that ogre slashed at me back then, my expression didn't even change!”
“Your expression didn't change? Your legs turned to jelly back then!”
“That was a strategic display of weakness! You don't understand!”
Beside one of the largest bonfires, more than ten people were busy around a self-made iron grill.
Three players each held a handful of meat skewers, frantically flipping them, brushing oil, and sprinkling seasoning, sweat dripping from their brows.
“The skewer on the left is burning! It's burning!”
“If it's burnt, you eat it! You won't taste the difference anyway!”
“You're the one who can't taste the difference! I maxed out my sense of taste!”
Just then, a commotion came from afar.
“Bruce is back!”
“Holy crap! What a huge wild boar!”
“My god! It's so big?! Vice Guild Master, where did you get this?!”
Everyone turned to look, only to see Bruce and another player carrying a massive wild boar out of the darkness.
The wild boar was visually estimated to be at least two meters long. It was tied to a wooden pole with ropes, carried on their shoulders one in front and one in back, looking as heavy as a small hill.
Following behind them were seven or eight players, holding small game like wild rabbits and pheasants, looking like a small hunting party.
Bruce's face was flushed red, though it was hard to tell if it was from exhaustion or excitement.
“Heave-ho—put it here, put it here!” He set the wooden pole on the ground, patted the dust off his hands, and stood with his hands on his hips, looking smug.
Several quick-witted players immediately rushed forward with wooden swords and daggers, swiftly skinning the boar and carving the meat. Their movements were incredibly skilled, showing they were veterans at hunting for extra meals.
The surrounding area was instantly packed with onlookers, and exclamations of admiration rose and fell.
“Vice Guild Master! Your luck is just too good!”
“I wandered around the forest all yesterday afternoon and didn't even see a rabbit! You go out and bring back a two-meter wild boar?”
“This is definitely a top-tier late-night snack! We're in for a treat tonight!”
Listening to the surrounding gasps of admiration, Bruce's grin stretched from ear to ear.
He cleared his throat and flipped his bangs flamboyantly. “Of course! Don't look at who I am. My luck is beyond question!”
“Triggering the main quest this morning, defeating the boss this afternoon, and getting a wild boar tonight—to be honest, even I admire myself a little.”
Although the nearby players clicked their tongues in wonder, none of them actually found it strange.
Bruce's luck was universally recognized as a metaphysical phenomenon across the entire server. Every time a main quest was triggered, he had a hand in it, and every time he was involved, he managed to cause some big commotion.
“But Vice Guild Master—” someone asked in puzzlement while gutting the boar with a knife, “I remember the nearby monsters were almost completely cleared out by us veteran players, right? Where did you get such a huge one?”
Hearing this, Bruce was about to continue bragging and show off his “heaven-defying luck” when a laugh came from outside the crowd.
Nan Cheng walked over slowly. Looking at the smug Bruce, he helplessly exposed him. “Don't listen to his boasting. It doesn't have much to do with luck.”
“He probably went to the newly opened area.”
“New area?” The players all looked up in unison.
“That's right,” Nan Cheng explained. “After the main quest was completed today, the map unlocked. The current open range has expanded from 20 kilometers to 50 kilometers. There are many wild monsters in the new area that haven't been wiped out yet, and he probably just happened to run into one.”
Bruce's smile instantly collapsed halfway. “...Brother Cheng! Can't you just let me finish my bragging?”
Nan Cheng shrugged calmly. “I'm just stating facts.”
“Then don't speak before I do!”
“Whether you say it or I say it, what's the difference? Either way, the result is that everyone knows you have good luck.”
Bruce opened his mouth, but couldn't find a single angle to retort.
The nearby players had already burst into laughter.
“Alright, alright, stop talking about that—” a player pulled a handful of sizzling, oily skewers from the iron grill and held them high. “The meat is ready! Eat up, eat up!”
“Coming, coming! Save two skewers for me!”
The bonfire side instantly became rowdy as the skewers were divided and grabbed. Laughter drifted far, far away in the night wind.
Nan Cheng also sat down by the fire, took a handful of skewers, and slowly flipped them.
The firelight reflected on his profile, illuminating his expression with a warm glow.
Beside him, Bruce was already gnawing on a whole roasted pig leg, muttering indistinctly as he chewed, “New map... tomorrow... go explore again... there's bound to be more good stuff...”
Nan Cheng glanced at him, smiled, and said nothing.
Rate on N.U.
