Under the warm, comfortable sun, Rey was casually whistling and humming a tune while he searched the bushes and trees in the area for any signs of eggs or other pets.
Suddenly, he heard rustling sounds nearby, and when he turned around to look, a loud slap fell on his face.
"Ah… sis Mia…" Rey was startled. Usually, it was Alex who beat him up and not Mia, who was more of the calm and cool type.
"What the hell were you thinking?" She didn't hear it and shouted at him. Next to her, Derek and Liam also did not look pleased.
"Bro! Are you also here? But I told you what I am doing. Why did you come here?" Rey sighed.
"What? Don't talk to him. Talk to me. What were you doing? Hmmm? Did you really think that there would be an egg here? You don't know this is a trap?" Mia twisted his ear mercilessly.
"No, sis. You guys listen to me first. I am not dumb, alright? They were trying to do something, and I was trying to play the double agent. Do you understand? Why would I willingly walk into this trap? I had an even bigger trap laid out for them, alright?"
Mia was shocked.
"That's right. I am not stupid, sis. I might be smiling all the time, but I am not stupid. Did you think I got into that tournament by fluke? I have been working hard every day. Liam helped us so much. I also want to contribute. I don't need you two to protect me at all times."
Rey explained everything to them. "If you guys had just let me play this out, I would have infiltrated into their group and found out more information. Ah. Why bro? Even you didn't trust me?" He looked at Liam with a frown, disappointed at him for the very first time.
Liam, on the other hand, sighed and shook his head. "It's not that I don't trust you, but you don't know these people. They will not hesitate to kill you."
"I am not saying that your plan is bad or it wouldn't have worked, but these are not your average players. Do you understand? While I am still alive, there is no need for you to take these risks."
He walked over to Rey and patted him on his head. He was grateful that the person saw an opportunity and tried to use it to help their team even though doing so was putting himself at risk.
"Next time, don't do anything without consulting with me first. I know we were busy with the tournament, but you still have to wait. It's okay to miss an opportunity. Your life is more important."
However, just as Liam was about to say something else, he abruptly stopped and picked off the fox that was on his neck and tossed her to the ground.
"Luna, take him to the guild residence and drop him there first. Get out of here now."
Before he could even finish his words, four players walked out of the trees in front of them. "Ha Ha Ha! Why are you sending him away so soon?" Madan laughed loudly.
Next to him, Kouske, Anya, and Barret were also present. All four of them looked like predators who had successfully managed to circle their prey.
Both Mia and Rey looked shocked. They hadn't expected these guys to show up so soon, but Liam did not look frazzled in the slightest.
He calmly signaled Luna to leave as Rey was too weak to face this group at the moment. He might die just from the spilling of friendly fire.
Liam then turned to look at the newly arrived guests. "Why did you call him here? Do you want to break up my team? If it were me, I would pay more attention to my own team instead of trying to pick apart others." He casually shrugged.
"Shut up!" Anya hissed at him. She hated him the most for stealing her emerald crown.
"He He. Why? You don't want me to point out the obvious?"
"Liam, let's leave." Mia reminded him. Every second they stayed here was dangerous. This was a trap, and there was no doubt about it.
However, Liam still did not look like he wanted to run. He stood steadily, holding his ground. He looked at the four players in front of them and smirked.
"Say… did you four ever think about what your big brother knows and doesn't know?"
"What do you mean?" Anya glared back at him.
Next to her, Kouske's face immediately changed. He did not like where this was going.
"I mean… do you really believe that your big brother did not know the truth about this game? He sure let you all die several times. Hmmm? Your all knowing brother did not know about the death in the game and how it affects you?"
"Don't spout nonsense. We haven't died that many times."
"Not now." Liam's lips further curled up. "How about back in the cave where you tried to steal a flame fragment? I personally watched you all die a few times. Oops. Did I say too much?" He chuckled mockingly.
"You! I knew it! I knew someone sabotaged us!" Barret blurted out. He was the one telling everyone from the beginning that their play's aggro was a mess and something was off.
"Well… I stole from you. You stole from me. Let's call it even. The main point is… are you all just puppets of someone else? Or do you have your own brain? Are you willing to die for your 'big brother' while he sits comfortably somewhere safe? Hmmm?"
Anya's eyes widened. Madan and Barret also became silent.
"Maybe he even let you all die a few times so you guys don't become more powerful than him?" Liam shrugged. Everything he said was on point, and the group of four looked shocked.
This was something that they had also thought about, so when Liam pointed it out, he was hitting the nail on the head.
Kouske saw this, and it was clear that things were not heading in a good direction. This needed to stop now. "That's enough. No more talking."
He immediately adjusted the ring on his finger, and in the next second, a huge figure materialized in front of them.
Liam and the others, however, did not simply stand there waiting for the death knight to be fully summoned. This was their cue, and they already started running in the opposite direction.
Seeing them flee for their life finally cheered up the group of four.
"You cannot run from us!" Madan sneered. He sent his beasts at the escaping three people. Anya as well spat at them and sent a couple of attacks.
Their attacks were strong, but it was insufficient to hold anyone back. Only the death knight was capable of doing that.
"Go! Kill them all!" Kouske commanded the death knight. This time no one would be escaping. They can run wherever they want, but today they were going to settle the scores once and for all.
The death knight grunted obediently, and just like its master wanted, it breathed out blue fumes and dashed behind the fleeing players.
Its speed was much faster than theirs, but unfortunately, Liam, Mia, and Derek had had too much of a headstart.
The terrain was also very tricky, and the undead that was bigger in size had the disadvantage of moving here. So things were not straightforward. There was a possibility that the three of them might really escape.
Kouske saw this and clenched his fist. "Damn it."
Anya, Madan, and Barret were also not happy about it, but there was nothing that they could do. They could only watch them run away.
"Fuck! Such a waste!" Madan sighed. This was the third time this guy was escaping from them! And it infuriated him that they couldn't do anything about it.
However... just as the three fleeing players were about to disappear completely from their eyesight into the forests, suddenly, something unexpected happened.
Liam stopped moving. Seeing him, Mia and Derek as well came to an abrupt halt and looked at him in confusion. Were they not running anymore?
"It is not difficult to escape now. But… the thing is… I don't think we need to run anymore." He turned around with a smile to face the death knight directly.
***
Mass Release Part 1 Chapter 1~
Please thank KingRig for sponsoring this mass release!
