---Third POV---
Child, someone turned his attention to Lux.
"Two bombs couldn't kill it? Did you mix rocks into the explosives?"
"Hmm? Don't blame me!" Lux crossed her arms and took a step back. "These were all sourced from ProGamer_Daddy!"
NeverShowOff touched the cold, lifeless body of the siren, casually wiped the blood off his hands, and took out a pen and paper to start recording:
---
[Siren Notes 1: Sirens are cold-blooded creatures. Beware of feigned death!]
[Supplementary: Human Archers' Combat Strength: Attack power is slightly higher than red-skinned worms, but their health is thin, and their mechanics are simple. Overall combat strength does not exceed 5 points.]
---
Since the only wooden plank that could serve as a roof for the carriage was destroyed by the siren, the players had no choice but to stick to their original plan of hanging the assassin's corpse on both sides of the carriage.
Meanwhile, they used broken wood pieces to fashion a splint for the headless archer to prevent losing resurrection materials on the road.
While nailing the wood, Child suddenly felt a surge of warmth flowing through his body. The exhaustion and dizziness buffs he had been suffering from disappeared, and he suddenly felt much more in control.
Even his mind felt sharper.
"!!!"
He opened his game panel in shock. "Holy crap! I leveled up?!"
Level 9.
He rubbed his eyes twice before believing what he was seeing.
He had only started playing the game half a month ago. Though he had earned a large chunk of bonus XP during the goblin war by risking his life, and filled his quest XP bar, he had just barely broken into Level 8 when he arrived in Nary Town.
After deducting quest XP, the amount of bonus XP needed to level up was consistent. Each level required 100 more XP than the last.
Reaching Level 8 required 800 bonus XP!
He opened the XP growth log and was stunned. "Defeating a siren grants 100 XP?!"
"What!!!!" The others opened their game panels as well, and three more stunned faces joined in.
"Four archers collectively gave us 50 XP, and now this?! This XP inflation is ridiculous!"
Lux stammered, nearly biting her tongue. "When we watched Viktor kill a Level 3 monster, it only gave just over 100 XP!"
At that time, the commotion caused by that monster, along with Viktor's attack, was far greater than these weak archers and clownish siren.
Garble frowned. "As far as I know, the player who gained the most XP just by spectating during that fight didn't even exceed 300."
"Not to mention when we killed those worms…" NeverShowOff sighed deeply before continuing, "We worked hard for two or three days back then, and each of us only got a dozen or so XP."
Although his sole contribution in this battle was drying out the mud and lighting the bomb, due to the fire element's slower formation compared to wind and light, he still earned more bonus XP than he ever did from his usual grueling exploration efforts.
The four exchanged glances. What kind of miserable grind had they been living through before?! Had they known the rewards on the new map were this generous, they would've completed the exploration activities much sooner!
"Could it be due to the siren being an intelligent species? The higher the intelligence, the more XP you gain from killing it?"
This trend had already shown signs during the goblin encounters. Goblin combat capability was weaker than the worms, which had a splitting mechanic.
For players Level 3 and above, most could take on two or even five goblins at once. Yet defeating them in pure melee combat yielded 5–15 XP.
Child clapped his hands together with a sudden realization. "I've got it! The game is hinting that the right way to save the world is to annihilate all heretics who worship gods!"
"…"
Lux tried to argue, "I think the game isn't that extreme…"
Garble glanced at the sky. "Regardless, let's head back to Honeyvale Town first. The smell of blood here is too strong."
During the time they spent defeating the siren, the surrounding area hadn't been peaceful. They could clearly hear something crossing the grassy wetlands on the western hillside, approaching them.
"Agreed. Let's save our progress so we can come back and grind XP sooner!"
Child waved toward the rear. "Kid, time to go!"
Gaeman, who had been lingering behind the group, snapped out of his daze and quickly caught up.
"Giddy-up!"
Using horse-driving techniques that the steed clearly couldn't understand, the horse was spurred on by the smell of blood and galloped ahead at an even faster pace, successfully shaking off the hyena pack trailing them.
As they neared the Great Oak Forest, the once-clear road grew faint, overrun with perennial grass and trees, making progress difficult.
Still, the group reached the teleportation array just before nightfall.
"Do you think we can stash the carriage in the basement?"
"If not, we'll just bring the horses back."
Chatting as they walked, NeverShowOff opened his game panel and turned to the others. "I'll log off to notify Viktor to activate the teleportation array. You guys… hmm? Who's there!"
All five stopped in their tracks, their eyes filled with caution as they stared at the black, skinny old man standing less than 1.7 meters away.
Looking at the blood-drenched players, Fuki smiled knowingly.
This group was much closer to the image of Watchers he had in his mind than those in the forest.
He lowered the hand he had instinctively raised, bowed slightly, and said, "Honorable Watchers, I have been awaiting your arrival."
The group exchanged puzzled looks.
An ally?
---
With Fuki providing magic power, the four players successfully brought the horse and the five corpses back to Honeyvale Town. Along the way, every player they encountered stared at them in shock.
"Whoa!"
"Damn! Are they blood knights?!"
"Hey! I just cleaned this street!"
Some players, clueless about the situation, stepped aside in fear of their blood-soaked appearance. Others, recognizing them, came over excitedly.
"Wow, you guys are amazing! Where'd you get that horse? It looks awesome!"
"Is the horse for sale? I'll pay $50!"
"I'll pay $500!"
"What about the giant eel on the horse? Is that for sale?"
"Nonsense! As a seasoned fisherman, I can tell that's a fish! Hey, brother, selling the fish?"
Though their return wasn't particularly loud, their overwhelming stench of blood acted like a beacon, quickly drawing a crowd of players around them…
They watched NeverShowOff and his group with envious and awestruck gazes.
He could even imagine logging into the forums after logging out and stumbling across posts showing themselves from other players' perspectives.
Unfortunately, they had other things to do and couldn't linger too long. They quickly wrapped up their showboating phase and politely declined the growing flood of bizarre questions.
Dragging along their tamed and now subdued horse, they made a beeline for the Lord's Residence. Even from a distance, they could hear a familiar loud voice.
"Lord Viktor, guess what we brought you!"
---Viktor's POV---
"Leave it at the door; don't come in."
I had already learned about the items NeverShowOff and his group had brought back through the player's shared vision when they arrived. By now, I was numb to the their obsession with collecting corpses.
Bringing back five corpses and acting as if they were delivering gifts?
I quickly disconnected from the linked sub-server and sighed as I stepped out.
The corpses were laid out neatly in the front yard garden. I briefly examined the four human corpses and offered some praise.
"Four ranger recruits. You've shown good progress in combat."
Ranger recruits were equivalent to magic apprentice-level beings. Roughly calculated, these four were around Level 7 or 8. While their magical aptitude wasn't remarkable, their adept archery skills would be more than enough to ambush unsuspecting players.
Child's jaw dropped. "Ranger recruits? They're not just ordinary people?"
I chuckled. "You think everyone's physique is as extraordinary as yours?"
A divine avatar like them was inherently blessed with unparalleled cultivation conditions. Mental power and physical strength grew in sync. For ranger recruits, apart from shooting arrows faster or seeing farther, there wasn't anything extraordinary about them.
Just as I was about to move past the human corpses, NeverShowOff couldn't help but ask, "Nothing else? Like their identities or affiliations?"
"No distinctive markings, so no clues to analyze," I replied calmly.
In truth, even if there were distinct markings, my knowledge of peripheral forces like those in Nary Town was likely no better than the players'. As I had mentioned before, spells and sorcery targeting the human brain were high-level magic. I didn't see a need to use such methods on ranger recruits who were hardly different from ordinary people.
Since this was a force targeting them, it was best left for the players to investigate on their own.
I turned to the monster's corpse, which had piqued my interest from the start.
Lifting its eyelid, I saw that the crimson eyeball beneath had already disintegrated, yet it still revealed some valuable information. I felt a twinge of curiosity.
A siren? In Nary Town?
Just yesterday, I'd been pondering who the hidden force trapping Edgar might be. Today, these ridiculous players had delivered the answer to me. Their luck was surprisingly good. This was the joy of not having to fight alone.
I released the siren and stood up.
"This siren is from the White Dove Ensemble."
"The White Dove Ensemble?" Child repeated, puzzled. "What's that?"
"Uh… a musical troupe?" Lux guessed.
Garble shook his head. "A musical troupe wouldn't be involved in something as extreme as contracting assassins."
NeverShowOff rested his chin on his hand. "Sounds more like a church of some deity?"
"Impossible. I remember the God of Sea's church is called the Deep Sea Order," Lux retorted.
Garble's expression grew serious.
"The records state that sirens are divine creations of the God of Sea. Could they… not believe in him?"
"Of course they can." I nodded, affirming the thought.
Child's mouth formed an "O" shape.
"The gods in this game are so competitive? Even creating life doesn't guarantee a unified faith among a race?"
"…Not exactly. The Deep Sea Order's influence among sirens is still unshakable," I corrected.
After finishing my inspection of the siren and confirming there were no special ornaments, I didn't dwell on it further. Instead, I spent two minutes organizing my thoughts.
"Have you heard of the creation myth of Aeltia in Nary Town?"
"Uh… are you referring to the story where the God of Light and the God of Darkness created humans so vigorously that they tore the world in two?"
Garble hesitated before responding, drawing unanimous objections from the other players.
"??? Aren't those two male gods?"
"Exactly! The version I heard said it was the God of Time and the God of Space who created the world, which makes way more sense!"
"If you have time and space, don't you also need the God of Life and the God of Despair?"
"Water, fire, earth, and wind are the four primary magical elements! Shouldn't they be included too?"
"Couldn't it have been all 13 ancient gods..."
"…"
I swallowed back the words I was about to say. Clearly, over the centuries, even bards hadn't had it easy.
Once the players' speculations began to wind down, I revealed the truth.
"The creation myth pertains to the origin of innate talents among intelligent species. Aeltia doesn't have any world-origin legends. According to the tale, all intelligent species in Aeltia possess inherent flaws and gifts. For example, dragons have unparalleled physical strength and innate draconic magic, but they are plagued by insatiable greed and arrogance. Dwarves have exceptional forging and smithing abilities but are burdened by short stature and volatile tempers. Elves excel in nature magic and archery but lack passion."
Child couldn't help but comment: "Why does the last one feel like less of a drawback?"
"Strengths can become weaknesses if not utilized properly. A seemingly hopeless situation could also represent endless possibilities. Overall, the world remains balanced," I explained.
Garble seemed to grasp something.
"So, the sirens' conversion to other deities is also due to their flaws? What flaw could be so significant that they would abandon the God of Sea?"
"Ever heard of The Little Mermaid?"
"You mean sirens also want eternal souls…" Lux paused, eyes widening. "Romantic obsessions?!"
I was speechless. They were, after all, rulers of the sea. How did their prestige drop so sharply when viewed through the players' lens?
"…You could say that. They are more emotional than the average intelligent species. Comparatively, it might even outweigh human dignity. It's heavier for them."
The four players gasped.
Garble muttered, "That's… unsettling."
"A whole ocean full of romantic obsessives?!" Child blurted out, half horrified, half amazed.
NeverShowOff squinted. "So they worship a God of Love to get magic that makes their crushes fall for them?"
Lux frowned. "But the siren we saw could manipulate sludge. And draw blood."
I shook my head. "Water magic is their innate ability. That wouldn't regress just because they changed faiths."
NeverShowOff's eyebrow twitched. "This is peak betrayal. The God of Sea got seriously shafted."
Yeah, they were given life, power, and gifts, only to use those very gifts to serve another deity...