Chapter 297 | Light Novel

“Oh, Demacia, You’ve only been in the city for a few days but you’ve already hooked up with the Despair Church?”

The other players were astonished upon hearing what Demacia had said in the chat group.

“Hehehe! I met one of the preachers at the tavern, and got invited,” replied Demacia proudly.

“So, how about it? This is a clue for the second questline! I’m pretty nifty, right? I got this information and I’m gonna share it with everyone for free! Let’s meet up at midnight, and sneak in together, okay?”

Demacia shared a screenshot of the note he got from the elderly preacher in the group.

“Okay, okay, Demacia, we’ll overlook what you did a few days ago considering you shared this information for free.”

“I agree, but…you still owe us a barbecue feast.”

Demacia turned a bit green.

“Oh, come on…you still thinking about having a feast? Nobody ended up getting the bugged items in the end, so does my original promise even count?”

“Why not? Didn’t you ended up with a storage ring in the end?”

Demacia: “…”

“Fine, fine. If it’s just one barbecue per person, then when I’m done having fun here in Maple Leaf City this time, I’ll treat you all to a feast.”

Demacia sighed.

However, soon he curiously typed,

⤷ Anyways, what are you all busy with in the city?

This time, the players didn’t form any large teams; instead, most operated individually or as part of a small party consisting of two or three members.

Meanwhile, Li Mu was chosen by Selena to partake in the Oakhand Questline, leaving Demacia on his own.

⤷ I’m wandering around the city, checking if there are any tasks to do. However, after half a day of looking around, it seems there are no NPCs offering any tasks. Although many shops are hiring, similar to the dark dwarves in Blackrock City, their rewards are merely copper coins, so it’s not worth the time.

⤷ I noticed that too. The human NPCs here are similar to the dark dwarves in Blackrock City…it seems they’re NPCs not capable of issuing tasks.

⤷ That’s probably the case. Also, I heard some elven NPC mention that only followers of the goddess can issue tasks. Welp, I guess it’s the game’s way of binding us to our own faction…

⤷ So we aren’t allowed to change factions? That’s a bit disappointing… I wanted to try joining other factions…

⤷ Ohho, seems like we have a traitor here! Lmao, so you want to abandon the goddess, eh? Well then, prepare to be killed!

⤷ Death to traitors!

⤷ Hunt down the betrayer!

⤷ …you bunch of paper trolls! I was just joking, geez don’t get so worked up!

The chat group buzzed with excitement, just like always.

Of course, while there are players who want to try out something new, there were also some who boldly decided to return to their ‘scene of the crime,’ so to speak…

“I’m gonna try buying stuff in the blackmarket once more…This time, I brought a legendary golden equipment! Hopefully I could exchange it for a storage ring!”

A player replied in the voice chat.

However, he quickly received teasing from others:

“Damn! Aren’t you afraid of your identity being exposed and be ripped into pieces?”

“Fear what? My current appearance is entirely different from the disguise I’ve used before…they won’t recognize me for sure! But speaking of it…the memories of these NPCs sure are really strong. Now, when I enter a store, they don’t let me freely touch things anymore…”

“Hahaha! Probably because they’re afraid of being scammed, just like last time? But then again…I wonder where all those items we bound from last time went.”

“Maybe it got corrupted, and the system deleted it. Anyway, the CP we used was refunded, and it turned out to be a net gain of a few hundred contribution points, so this outcome is quite satisfying if you asked me…”

“Its a pity since we scammed so many items from those slavers. But it would be nice if we could exchange our bound equipment for a ring this time.”

“Hehehe, I’m checking it now; This merchant I’m currently transacting has several storage rings…Come quickly if you’re interested.”

“Darn it! Tell me your location quickly!”

Messages like these continued to flood the group chat.

Meanwhile, Demacia sighed dramatically as he silently watched his fellow buddies wrack their brains out just to acquire a storage ring.

He then looked at the small, exquisite ring he had exchanged with Little Salty Cat and kissed it before proudly stating,

“My foresight sure is unmatched… Ah~ to have such great insight sure is lonesome….”

Players: “…”

⤷ Get lost!

⤷ Die you scamming prick!

Watching his chat screen being filled with messages as it scrolled down like a waterfall, Demacia wryly chuckled.

However, his laughter didn’t last long as the envious jeers from the players gradually shifted when everyone began collectively spamming:

⤷ Hey Demacia, did you pull a legendary item today in the lottery(lol)?

Demacia: “…”

⤷ Get Lost!!!

He typed with lots of exclamation mark, suddenly feeling that his storage ring… didn’t feel as good anymore.

As night descended, Maple Leaf City slowly transformed from a bustling hub into a tranquil metropolis being enveloped in darkness.

One by one, buildings in every region gradually flickered with faint lights inside them, casting a mystical aura all over the city.

Eventually, as the lights in each house dimmed and each resident tucked in as midnight neared, even the once bustling areas succumbed to an all-encompassing darkness.

Maple Leaf City was no different from any other major cities within the world of Seigües.

Although it was the most prosperous city on the entire Empire’s Borderland, it was still far from a Nightless City typically seen back on Earth.

Meanwhile, as the entire city embraced the lull of slumber, the emptied streets soon became a blank canvas for secretive figures to emerge.

Under the cover of night, these figures stealthily moved towards a specific direction within Maple Leaf City.

In the southwest of Maple Leaf City lay the largest slum district in the entire city.

Compared to other places, this area fell into darkness much earlier.

Being the most chaotic place in the city, every house in this region had already locked its doors as soon as the sun had disappeared.

In a certain corner of the slum.

Herein lies a piece of ancient ruins, resembling a large amphitheater.

It is said that these are ruins left behind when Maple Leaf City was just built—an architectural relic belonging to the elven civilization that predates it.

The deliberate preservation of this ancient site stands as a tribute, a commemoration orchestrated by the very first Borderlord of the Cappadocia Household himself to immortalize his own heroic military feats.

During the day, this amphitheater stood as a famous sightseeing spot for curious visitors.

But as soon as the night fell, an eerie and terrifying ambiance would cloaked the surroundings of this ruins, dissuading anyone to dare approach it.

Currently at the ruins’ entrance, two mysterious figures, draped in hooded cloaks, stood silently, as if waiting for something…

Also occasionally, from time to time, someone would approach from a distance, bowing to them.

They will then drew a strange symbol upon their chests before entering the ruins.

At the inner section of the amphitheater, nearly a hundred hooded individuals formed a silent circle, with each one cradling an ever-burning candle in their hands.

Amidst them, a platform hosted an elderly figure, draped in a hood and leaning on a cane.

It was the very same old man who had preached in the tavern during the day.

Draped in black attire featuring an eye-catching dragon emblem on his chest, the hooded elder held a cup radiating a subtle glow, all the while eagerly observing the area beneath the platform for which he stood…

— 297 —

【 LET’S SNEAK IN TOGETHER 】

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