Malphegor
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MoP: Ch. 40
🕑 Added 2025-01-28 20:46:31 +0000 UTC---Third POV---
Don't misunderstand the dwarven race's appearance because of LootGoblin.
Viktor had lived for 700 years and had never seen a dwarf uglier than him.
Typically, dwarves might be prone to obesity or have ruddy complexions, but in most other ways, they were not much different from humans.
But LootGoblin…
Viktor concluded it was likely a side effect of insufficient divine power.
After all, if you allocated everything to talents, you had to sacrifice some other attributes.
---
LootGoblin stared blankly, murmuring in a low voice.
"No wonder I was mistaken for a monster at first…"
Looking at the near-collapse state of LootGoblin, ProGamer_Daddy suppressed his schadenfreude and tried to comfort him.
"It's okay. It's just that… uh… you look a bit unsightly. But hey, we've maxed out both our life and combat talents!"
He used LootGoblin's earlier words to reassure him.
"We even scored a main storyline quest with excellent rewards!"
LootGoblin finally lost it. "But no girls want to team up with a goblin!"
And that was even when all the players were reasonably good-looking!
He slumped like a puppet with its strings cut, his soul seemingly drained. No matter how ProGamer_Daddy tried to console him, it didn't work.
After a while, LootGoblin suddenly straightened up. "No! I'm going to ask the devs if I can delete my character and start over!"
Forget all the so-called innate talents of a hidden race. Compared to the drawbacks, they don't matter at all!
"Huh?? Just because of your appearance?" ProGamer_Daddy was stunned.
If it were him, he wouldn't care about such a thing. But to each their own, he wouldn't impose his own standards on others.
He just felt it was a pity to lose a potentially special-race teammate.
He thought for a moment and realized something overlooked.
"Actually, no one's asked the devs if character deletion is possible. You should try it out."
After all, this game didn't even have double-digit player numbers yet. Deleting a character could lead to two outcomes: either the player got to rebuild their character or lost beta access entirely.
Might as well have LootGoblin test the waters for the rest of the players.
"Alright, I'll try it now!" LootGoblin decisively opened the game interface, ready to log out.
At that moment, ProGamer_Daddy thought of something.
"By the way, when did you become an all-rounder? You even know farming? I thought only GameLord420 was into that."
LootGoblin's hand froze mid-motion.
"F-Farming?"
"Yeah. Earlier, Viktor gave quests related to construction, invention, and farming…"
ProGamer_Daddy counted on his fingers as he listed them out. When he finished, he noticed the silence.
Looking up, he locked eyes with LootGoblin's horrified expression.
ProGamer_Daddy was stunned. "You falsified your application info, didn't you?"
"Shh! Keep it down!" LootGoblin lowered his voice, nervously glancing around.
If the other players found out, he'd be done for!
ProGamer_Daddy bent down conspiratorially, raising his hand to gesture "OK."
The two of them huddled sneakily in the corner.
Luminaris above glanced down, baffled by what the odd undead were scheming now.
"How did you even manage that?"
Once in the corner, ProGamer_Daddy couldn't hold back his curiosity.
As a seasoned veteran of filling out beta game questionnaires, he'd seen countless exaggerated application forms.
But the application review of Chronicles of Aeltia was strict. He'd never seen anyone successfully slip through undetected!
Especially considering how Actually_Hitler got rejected and rewritten 13 times before passing! Yet this guy not only boasted about a bunch of skills but also convinced the devs?
"Ahem." LootGoblin cleared his throat guiltily.
"You know how when you're trying to impress girls, you need a persona? I happen to be quite knowledgeable about technical jargon in various fields."
"So you just know enough to bluff outsiders?" ProGamer_Daddy judged disdainfully.
Surely the game devs wouldn't believe him just because he wrote an impressive essay?
"Of course not! My title as an online heartthrob isn't for nothing!"
At this, LootGoblin straightened his back proudly.
"To perfect this persona, my social media accounts are watertight! From study progress to project outcomes, everything is documented! And not a single borrowed image—all original! Perfect for being every girl's dream online boyfriend!"
"No borrowed images? Then how'd you fake the achievements?" ProGamer_Daddy was shocked.
Study progress could be fabricated, but did LootGoblin actually put effort into creating something?
He suddenly recalled something and narrowed his eyes.
"Were those the materials you asked from our group for 'helping new players'?"
LootGoblin avoided eye contact and touched the dusty wall, changing the subject: "Wow, this wall is really tall…"
ProGamer_Daddy chuckled dryly.
"Who provided the construction plans?"
"MemeKnight. Isn't he a civil engineering major?"
"The farming?"
"GameLord420. I got it along with the building plans from MemeKnight."
"The inventions?"
"You."
"Me?" ProGamer_Daddy was dumbfounded. "Since when do I invent things?"
"Hehehe, creative embellishment, just creative embellishment!" LootGoblin grinned sheepishly.
"Didn't you used to handcraft mechanical models? I elevated that to being an inventor."
ProGamer_Daddy took a deep breath.
He finally understood just how fabricated the online world could be.
Even a game company fell for a persona pieced together with scraps of real achievements!
"No wonder your beta access was approved so quickly. You cobbled together a persona out of all our skills!"
"When we get back, I'm telling MemeKnight and GameLord420 about this!"
LootGoblin muttered defensively, "Why not use a persona I built with my own hands?"
ProGamer_Daddy crossed his arms, eyeing him skeptically.
"Sure, and the game devs used it too. They even shared all your supposed race abilities with the game NPCs. Are you still going to ask the devs to delete your character?"
If the devs found out, forget restarting—their beta access would be blacklisted!
LootGoblin sulked, giving up.
"Fine, I'll keep the character…"
Suddenly, he felt his character wasn't so bad after all.
---
Meanwhile…
Alyanne led the other players to find Edgar.
She had mentally prepared herself for disdain and ridicule.
Even though she couldn't understand the strange language they spoke, she filled in the blanks herself:
"A useless burden carrying the curse of a monster!"
"A girl without a right hand—what good is she? Not even fit for cooking!"
"The Watchers don't take anyone like that!"
Each imagined line stabbed into her heart.
And yet…
She felt the burning gazes from behind her, sending shivers down her spine.
The chatter behind her hadn't stopped since she arrived, but something felt off. Strangely, none of them seemed to hold the disdain she expected.
Alyanne had encountered countless people and was keenly aware of their emotions.
These people harbored neither mockery nor contempt, nor did they seem hateful or pitiful toward her.
There was barely even sympathy!
It was as though her condition was simply a given, no different from anyone else. That didn't mean they lacked a reaction to her, though.
But the emotions she perceived from them were entirely foreign—something she couldn't comprehend at all.
Without realizing it, the sky started to rain.
Alyanne shivered.
She shook her head and threw the distracting thoughts out of her mind.
Although the gaze from behind wasn't unpleasant, it still made her feel uneasy. It could be said that from the moment she saw the players'… bold behavior, she felt she wouldn't get along with them.
But for her bright future, even if she didn't get along, she had to force herself to push through.
"Just pretend you don't see it, just pretend you don't see it..."
Alyanne repeatedly muttered Viktor's words to herself, trying to cheer herself up.
When faced with things she didn't understand, it was better to act as if she didn't see them.
She tightened her facial expression, trying to keep her face calm and indifferent, emotionless.
The undead sorcerer had said that one must never show weakness in front of players!
---
NeverShowOff used a stick to prop up a piece of red-dyed tough grass clothing and shouted like a tour guide.
"Don't run off! Let's go find the NPC to get quest items, improve our task efficiency!"
But it didn't help.
The players were all headstrong.
Some were even uninterested in doing quests or leveling up. And when they saw the rain, their attention was immediately diverted.
"Wow! The rain effect looks so realistic!"
"I think I can hear the sound of the budget burning!"
Soon, many players quietly left the group for various reasons.
Garble was at the back maintaining order, unable to stop those who genuinely wanted to leave.
They said they had seen the guides on the forum and knew where Edgar's house was, so they didn't need old players to lead the way.
He helplessly shrugged, glad that he hadn't confirmed the beginner's quest yet.
The remaining players weren't obedient either, walking slowly.
They just shifted their curious focus from the scenic buildings to the new NPC, Alyanne, who was leading the way.
A red-haired player curiously stared at the back of Alyanne's head.
"The new NPC is a beautiful, cold type! I thought the assistant position would be for a pure, sweet girl."
"The pure type is the Luminaris in the church, right? That statue looks like it could be a punishment, plus it's a 'training' type!"
Another player in a blue gown responded.
The blue gown was made from the last bits of cloth, so it only had two sleeves.
But it was summer, so it wasn't too cold.
The red-haired player stroked his chin. "True, though Luminaris is still just a ball, but she's still a goddess."
"Have you guys noticed? There are too few female creatures in our faction?"
All nine players were male, and the only female with a gender was the new NPC leading the way.
The blue gown player lowered his head and thought.
"I heard that NPCs in this game have high intelligence and power. Could it be that our faction leader has some weird preferences?"
"That makes sense!" the red-haired player exclaimed in realization.
He had seen Viktor's intelligence in the church, and he could respond to abnormal player behavior.
Coupled with the fact he could shut down the server when someone died, controlling NPC appearances was completely normal!
The red-haired player's gaze shifted to Alyanne's disappearing right hand.
Alyanne tried to cover it, but she was holding in her frustration and refused to wear a sleeve long enough to cover her arm.
So, as she walked, it was bound to be noticed by the players. Especially when players were so curious about everything.
"So our faction leader has a thing for physical disabilities? That's kind of extreme."
The blue gown player nodded with certainty.
"Definitely, the game world has magic, so such injuries are minor, they must have been left untreated on purpose!"
The two players exchanged glances, both seeing the delightful surprise in each other's eyes.
The red-haired player was overjoyed. "We're geniuses!"
Garble at the back was feeling dazed. "Is… is that really true?"
Something felt off.
Just then, Viktor walked over.
What a coincidence, for him to arrive just as he overheard rumors about himself!
Garble was the first to notice him approaching, giving him a subtle nod.
"Leader, uh, Lord."
"Call me whatever, I don't mind the title," Viktor replied kindly. He then turned to look at the two players discussing his preferences.
The two players shuddered. "Hello, leader!" For some reason, they both felt an icy chill in their hearts.
"It's okay, I'm just looking around." Viktor nodded at the two and continued walking past the players.
His gaze subtly swept over the red-haired player.
If he wasn't mistaken, this was the same player who had been running naked in the church earlier, right?
The player was a bit too eccentric...
Viktor's eyes grew meaningful.
He walked all the way to Alyanne's side and began walking shoulder to shoulder with her at the front.
Alyanne instantly straightened her back. "Master!"
Viktor stumbled. He didn't expect her to address him like that.
"There's no need to worry too much about the contract; The Watchers don't take slaves. You're just like the others, just call me leader."
"Okay, l-leader," Alyanne obediently corrected herself.
There was a brief silence.
She suddenly felt that the few hundred meters of road felt incredibly long.
"Turn right, don't be nervous."
"Oh, okay!"
After understanding Viktor's meaning, her face turned bright red.
She quickly adjusted her walking posture. She was extremely grateful that the players behind them were making enough noise to dilute the awkwardness.
Alyanne had no idea where to put her hands, her heart pounding incessantly.
The person walking beside her was a demigod-level mage! And he was paying attention to her!
She urgently needed to do something to distract herself.
Right! The players!
"What are the players talking about behind us? It seems pretty heated."
After speaking, she realized her mistake and quickly corrected herself. "I was just asking casually, I didn't mean to pry into The Watchers' secrets!"
What am I doing?!
She internally cursed herself. Her brain always malfunctioned at crucial moments!
Clearly, Viktor was wary of her and didn't want her to know The Watchers' unique communication language.
Viktor didn't mind this and casually replied.
"They think I like special creatures or women with contrasts."
The players thought he didn't understand since he hadn't reacted earlier.
Now, they were discussing even more recklessly.
It had evolved into a debate about whether he preferred Luminaris or Alyanne.
For this, he had to clear up something.
First, although Luminaris had no gender, the memories he received belonged to Aeceus Muse.
And Aeceus was male.
Second, magic wasn't omnipotent. He hadn't healed Alyanne's hand simply because the current Watcher lacked the corresponding magical potion.
Having lived for seven hundred years, Viktor had enough experience to write a guide to romantic encounters in Aeltia.
Such rumors were nothing to him.
But if possible, he hoped the players would give him a more reasonable connection.
Comments
Malphegor
Your perk has 10 advance chapters. Assigning Ch. 40 to your perk was a mistake on my side
Zitim
Where are chapters 34-39?
