The lord’s expression was exceedingly solemn. Though the mention of her ‘short little legs,’ a phrase that seemed permanently etched into everyone’s minds, still made Bai Xia’s temper flare instantly, she was thankfully adept at discerning the situation. Thus, after drawing a deep breath, she succinctly recounted her prior experiences.
Upon hearing that the knight had perished, the lord’s expression grew even more grim.
“He’s already dead?” the lord exclaimed, a hint of disbelief in his voice. “How could this be… Adventurer, could you tell me the location of his death?”
“Over in the Windfall Plains.”
With serious matters at hand, the lord finally abandoned his jesting demeanor. Yet, as Bai Xia uttered the name of her previous leveling spot, a subtle trace of confusion crept into his expression.
“Windfall Plains?” he murmured, a frown deepening on his brow. “How is that possible? Shouldn’t it be in the Endless Forest…”
After muttering to himself with a furrowed brow for a moment, the lord beckoned for Bai Xia and Tian Zheng to approach. Then, from an unknown source, he produced a highly detailed map and spread it across the table. “Could you point out the exact location?”
Bai Xia scrutinized the map, pondering for a moment, before extending a delicate, fair finger to tap a specific spot.
“Here?” the lord questioned, his brow furrowed deeper. “That shouldn’t be right.”
Gazing at the direction she indicated, the lord grew even more bewildered.
“I previously dispatched several Dawn Knights into the Endless Forest Sea to investigate anomalies,” he explained, his voice laced with confusion. “Even if they met a tragic end, their bodies should have appeared within the Endless Forest Sea. Why would he be found in the Windfall Plains? And this location… hmm, Little Bear Village?”
Setting aside the village name, which left both Bai Xia and Tian Zheng somewhat speechless, Tian Zheng seized the opportune moment to inquire after hearing the lord’s unconscious murmuring: “Lord, from what you’ve said, has something occurred within the Endless Forest Sea?”
The lord looked up at them, and after a brief silence, he divulged the general situation.
It turned out that about half a month prior, as the Lord of Forest City, he had suddenly received a warning from the guardian fairies. According to the fairies, they had detected an outbreak of some malevolent aura within the Endless Forest Sea!
However, despite the fairies repeatedly venturing forth to investigate, they ultimately found nothing.
The last outbreak had occurred a week prior. Due to its proximity to Forest City, the lord had dispatched the Dawn Knights, who belonged to Forest City, to investigate the situation ahead of the fairies.
This time, however, an unforeseen incident had occurred, for soon after, the Dawn Knights had suddenly lost contact!
And when the fairies arrived later, they had only detected a lingering aura of malevolence at the scene, confirming that everything that had transpired was not an illusion.
The lord and the fairies had attempted to search for other suspicious traces in the vicinity. Yet, apart from that, there was still nothing, and then, even that unknown malevolent aura had ceased to appear.
At a time when the lord was at his wit’s end, a turning point had emerged with the emblem Bai Xia had brought back.
Only…
“Why would a Dawn Knight appear in the Windfall Plains?”
A Dawn Knight, who should have been in the Endless Forest Sea, had suddenly died in the Windfall Plains; this was abnormal no matter how one looked at it.
Even if the knights encountered some emergency during their mission, they should have returned to report to the lord first, rather than wandering off. Moreover, even if they fought an unknown enemy and were annihilated, their bodies should have remained in the Endless Forest Sea, not the Windfall Plains.
“Furthermore,” the lord continued, “although the location you indicated is merely an activity zone for low-level monsters, there are still quite a few carnivorous creatures. Given that there were no traces of his body being gnawed by monsters, it proves he must have died recently. But that only makes it even harder to comprehend…”
The lord rubbed his forehead in deep frustration. Bai Xia, however, raised an eyebrow before suddenly speaking, “Could he have been captured by someone and taken to the Windfall Plains? Perhaps he escaped but succumbed to his severe injuries along the way? Also, Lord, you just mentioned Little Bear Village, didn’t you? Is that the closest village?”
Bai Xia’s calm suggestion made the lord’s eyes light up. As he studied the route on the map, he explained, “Precisely. The location you marked is only near Little Bear Village; it’s a small hamlet.”
“In that case, could the Dawn Knight have escaped from Little Bear Village?”
Faced with Bai Xia’s proposed possibility, the lord did not respond immediately. He pondered for a good while before looking back at the two of them and slowly beginning, “There is indeed such a possibility. After all, a Dawn Knight couldn’t have stayed in the Windfall Plains indefinitely; otherwise, they would have been discovered long ago. Little Bear Village’s culpability is indeed highly significant. Therefore… would the two adventurers be willing to accept this lord’s commission?”
“We are eager to hear the details.”
“Little Bear Village is beyond the bounds of the Endless Forest Sea,” the lord explained. “I cannot directly dispatch people to investigate. However, time is of the essence. Thus, might I ask you adventurers to go and ascertain the situation first? Of course, you only need to uncover the specific circumstances, and regardless of whether Little Bear Village harbors anomalies, this lord will ultimately bestow both of you with rewards.”
Forest City belonged to no single faction; it was a territory within the Endless Forest Sea, independently protected by the fairies.
Little Bear Village, however, did not fall within the Endless Forest Sea’s domain, nor did it belong to Forest City; instead, it was a borderland of the kingdom.
While this small village, as suggested by Bai Xia, indeed carried substantial suspicion, being outside the jurisdiction of Forest City or the Endless Forest Sea, the Lord of Forest City was unable to intervene directly.
If there truly was something amiss within, it would be fine. But if the speculation proved wrong, it could easily give the kingdom an opportunity, and any resulting misunderstanding would be even more disastrous.
Therefore, allowing adventurers, who could move freely anywhere, to go forth and ascertain the situation first, was undoubtedly the best option.
Of course, considering that if there truly was something amiss within, the enemy capable of annihilating a small squad of Dawn Knights was not someone Bai Xia and Tian Zheng could currently handle. Thus, the lord’s request was merely for an investigation, and they would receive a reward regardless of whether any anomalies were found.
With the lord having spoken to this extent, Bai Xia and Tian Zheng naturally had no further reason to hesitate.
“Of course, we’d be glad to help!”
****
Emerging from the Lord’s Mansion, Bai Xia and Tian Zheng did not immediately return to the Windfall Plains and rush to Little Bear Village. For the distance between Forest City and Little Bear Village was not negligible, and traveling solely on foot would be too time-consuming.
And if enemies truly resided within Little Bear Village, then, upon realizing that the knight’s escape likely exposed their whereabouts, they would clearly not remain in place, awaiting their arrival.
Therefore, by special permission from the lord, Bai Xia and Tian Zheng could obtain a swift steed from the horse market free of charge as their mount. Of course, it would likely be reclaimed after the mission’s completion, for a swift steed, being the highest-grade mount available in the horse market, was far from inexpensive.
In the game, players could learn riding skills after reaching Level 15, which also unlocked the pet and mount systems.
Pets and mounts were sold in stores, though none of them were cheap. Especially pets; those sold in stores had mediocre stats and were outrageously expensive!
Mounts were a little better, but only marginally so.
Truly powerful pets or mounts had to be captured by players themselves. Using capture tools sold by the system, they could be captured when a monster’s health was severely depleted, with a certain chance of taming it.
Or, if one was luckier, one could obtain pet eggs from monster lairs or by defeating monsters, and choosing to hatch them would also yield juvenile pets or mounts.
Of course, there was an even simpler way to obtain pets or mounts beyond these methods: that was—recharging!
While ‘Otherworld’ (TL Note: The name of the game being played, ‘Yijie’ in Chinese) currently had no related events, in the end, online games were essentially the domain of pay-to-win players.
‘You can’t get stronger without spending money? That doesn’t exist.’
Of course, most people were currently on the same starting line. Without the ability to use ‘cash power’ (TL Note: A slang term for the advantage gained by spending money in games), they could only rely on luck.
Thus, without question, Bai Xia was an ‘European Emperor’ (TL Note: A Chinese slang term, ‘Ouhuang,’ referring to someone with exceptionally good luck in gacha games or RNG-based systems).’
With the token provided by the lord, she successfully claimed a pure white swift steed from the horse market. However, as she gazed at the magnificent, extraordinary creature before her, another problem emerged.
There was only one horse, but two people.
This was certainly not due to the lord’s oversight; the swift steed had ample space, perfectly capable of accommodating two riders. Yet, for Bai Xia, this meant she would have to ride tandem with Tian Zheng.
Riding tandem itself was not an issue, but Bai Xia felt a strange awkwardness about it. However, going back to the lord now would not secure a second swift steed, and besides, Bai Xia was not so brazen.
So, in the end, after returning to the Windfall Plains and summoning the swift steed, she could only sigh. ‘Fine… riding tandem it is. It’s not a big deal.’
Shaking her head, she silently lamented how increasingly fussy she was becoming, and Bai Xia mounted the steed first.
It was fortunate that in the game, one could simply mount a steed by approaching it. Otherwise, with Bai Xia’s short little legs, she would probably need a ladder to get onto the horse.
While Bai Xia was still marveling at the convenience of the game, Tian Zheng, with his tall and imposing stature, had already stepped onto the stirrup and gracefully swung himself onto the horse behind her, settling into place. His dashing movements made Bai Xia, who felt intensely jealous, involuntarily pout.
‘Damn, he’s so cool!’
Though intensely jealous, Bai Xia glanced at her own short little legs, sighed, and finally gave up.
Some things, for her current self, simply couldn’t be forced, such as height.
The man behind her couldn’t see her expression, nor was he thinking so much. Adjusting his posture on the swift steed, he then opened the map, confirmed their direction, and flicked the reins.
“Hold on tight. We’re off.”
The next moment, before Bai Xia could react, the snowy white steed beneath them neighed and galloped forward. The game perfectly replicated real-world inertia, causing her body, which had been leaning slightly forward and maintaining a small distance, to directly collide into the man’s embrace behind her.
Then, she wondered if it was her imagination, but she felt Tian Zheng’s body stiffen for a fleeting moment.
‘Probably my imagination?’
Bai Xia subconsciously shifted her body, paying it no mind, and naturally, she remained oblivious to the profound gaze of the man behind her.
Soon enough, however, Tian Zheng’s expression returned to normal.