On the open ground of Starfall Forest, shortly after Iluvia departed, the scattered players trickled back in groups of two and three.
Clearly, they still remembered that the quest to subjugate the Kobold Chief was not yet completed.
Though the cutscene earlier was spectacular, the quest rewards were what truly mattered.
Shortly after returning to the Divine Kingdom, Iluvia issued a new system quest to the players: hand over the dragon scale that the Kobold Chief had used to summon Mosator, the Lord of Plague, to West.
Meanwhile, Black Tooth, who had been lying unconscious on the ground for a long time, happened to slowly wake up at this moment. Upon opening its eyes, it was met with over a hundred large faces leaning in close—the players who had resurrected at the temple had long since rushed back using the teleportation array.
Black Tooth: “...”
It froze instantly, struggling desperately to get up and flee.
However, how could the players possibly let it have its way?
Before it could struggle much, someone yelled out, “The boss is awake! Quick, land the last hit!” In an instant, the players raised their weapons with malicious grins, raining blows down upon it.
“Me first, me first! Count me in for the first kill achievement!”
“Don't steal! Everyone gets EXP! It doesn't depend on just one hit!”
Terror filled Black Tooth's eyes, but under the players' mobbing, it was quickly released from its misery.
Within seconds, crisp system notifications sounded in the players' ears:
【Ding—】
【Completed Hidden Quest: Kill the Kobold Chief】
【EXP +1000】
【Merit Points +200】
【Bonus Resurrection Coin ×3】
“Holy shit?! Extra Resurrection Coins? Huge profit!”
While everyone was still admiring their rewards on the system panel, Bruce darted out from the crowd with quick reflexes, snatched the black dragon scale dropped by the boss, gripped it tightly above his head, and grinned broadly:
“Hehehe, I got the dragon scale!”
He looked utterly proud.
Seeing this, the other players were rendered speechless:
“Bruce, you really are a dog!”
Complaints aside, they didn't push the matter any further. Since handing in the dragon scale was a group quest, everyone would receive rewards regardless of who turned it in.
Right on cue, West slowly walked out from the forest, having already been informed in advance by Iluvia.
West still looked a bit dazed, clearly not having fully recovered from the divine war that had just taken place.
Her Grace the Goddess won! That's wonderful! We won!!!
He cheered frantically in his heart.
“It's West!”
“Yo! Isn't that our knight bro? Great timing.”
“He got here pretty fast. Was this guy secretly following behind us?”
“Alright, cut the chatter! Bruce, hand the quest item to the knight bro already! Don't delay our rewards!”
Seeing West appear before them, the players' eyes lit up.
West: “...”
Listening to the players' chatter, he choked on his words, especially at the one who claimed he was secretly following them.
However, he quickly snapped back to reality, remembering the task entrusted to him by Her Goddess.
Bruce toyed with the dragon scale in his hands for a bit—first biting it with his teeth, poking it with his wooden sword, and finally even dripping a drop of blood onto it. Seeing no reaction whatsoever, he handed it over with a look of regret, as if he had missed out on something huge.
West: “...”
His lips twitched.
...
Combining the EXP from the Kobold Chief subjugation quest, the sudden world boss appearance quest that summoned the Goddess, and the EXP players earned earlier from killing ordinary kobolds in groups, they had long surpassed the requirements for class change.
Thus, many players began returning to the temple square one after another, preparing to undergo their class change at the Temple of Light.
However, a considerable number of players chose to stay in the Castellan Ruins to continue clearing out the remaining kobolds—after all, no one would ever complain about having too much EXP.
Besides, the main quest to clear out the kobold lair was not yet complete, not to mention that one of the quest rewards was a limited-edition exclusive title.
Nan Cheng's team mostly chose to stay behind, with the exception of Bing Lin.
Word was that she needed to go back and continue building the player town, where Tao-chan, the player leading the construction, was already waiting for her in camp.
Nan Cheng and his group also heard that Tao-chan had designed a future development plan for the player town, which had already been approved by Saintess Lady Lilith.
Furthermore, seemingly because of this, Tao-chan received a massive amount of EXP from Lady Lilith, filling Nan Cheng with envy.
Meanwhile, deep within the Castellan Ruins occupied by the kobolds.
Through the players' repeated luring and clearing, the number of kobolds in the ruins had decreased by more than half, leaving the whole area noticeably emptier.
Even the dullest among the surviving ordinary kobolds could feel that something was wrong.
What made them even more uneasy was that their leader, Black Tooth, had also vanished.
This immediately threw their hearts into panic.
And right at this moment, the players struck!
Shouts of slaughter rose one after another from all directions, causing instant chaos among the already nervous kobolds.
“Fast, fast, fast! Charge, brothers!”
“Don't crowd! Divide territory by team! Don't steal!”
“Move aside! Our team spotted this one first!”
“Kill them!!!”
“Each one gives at least three or four hundred EXP, we're making bank!”
The players' voices were filled with excitement, as if they had laid eyes on gorgeous beauties.
To others, the kobolds were hideous and ferocious creatures, but in the players' eyes, they were walking EXP packs.
At first, the kobolds attempted to resist, but they quickly broke down.
They began scattering and fleeing in all directions.
...
In a certain part of the ruins.
Hao Bai silently pulled a wooden dagger out from the back of a kobold's neck.
Blood erupted outward. The kobold struggled violently twice before its body rapidly withered, cracked, and finally dissolved into ash in the air.
Hao Bai looked down at the wooden dagger in his hand. The blade was smeared with dark red kobold blood—sticky and foul-smelling.
He frowned.
“This dagger is still a bit dull...”
Hao Bai muttered under his breath.
As a professional player who spent years playing various online games, he understood all too well how much a comfortable weapon affected combat efficiency.
Grip, edge sharpness, weight balance—every slight flaw would greatly compromise control precision.
However, there was no helping it. Iluvia didn't have weapons suitable for players, and creating them out of thin air would waste divine power. These wooden weapons were the best she could provide at the time... cough cough, even though it had only cost her 0.01 divine power points.
Hao Bai flicked the dagger, shaking off most of the blood, and then wiped it on the back of his hand.
Though the dagger lacked sharpness, he realized its durability was quite impressive, and it was light enough.
He had tried using kobold weapons before, but they were far too cumbersome and broke after short use.
As expected, system products are always top quality.
He thought silently to himself.
Even if it was just starter gear.
Then, shaking off his thoughts, Hao Bai looked up at the sky.
The sky in the game was already stained with twilight. The sun sank slowly along the horizon, coating the entire ruins in a warm orange-red glow.
Meanwhile, day was about to break in the real world.
Remembering he had business at his gaming club during the day, he felt a slight headache coming on. “I need to hurry up...”
With that, he turned his gaze toward several kobolds still wandering in the distance.
With a barely audible whisper, he activated the Lurk skill. His figure began to fade and blur like a drop of water merging into the river, quietly vanishing into the shadows of the ruins.
A second later, he appeared behind the nearest kobold.
He raised his hand.
The dagger plunged down.
Pfft—
The blade sliced with pinpoint precision into the back of its neck.
...
Rate on N.U.
