Vol. 3: Chapter 5
Outside the mine, Lila’s hundred-player squad formed a tight semi-circle, their backs to the entrance.
Before them was a seething mass of monsters, a tide of darkness so dense that the faint light couldn't penetrate it, making it impossible to tell how deep their ranks went.
A conservative estimate put their numbers at over five thousand.
Lila was struggling to interpret the quest objective. What did “defend for two hours” actually mean? Did they simply have to hold this position for two hours without breaking? Or did they need to clear the entire horde within that time frame?
If it was the former, it wouldn't be a major issue. The incoming monsters seemed to be of the same caliber as the ones they’d already fought, and they would struggle to break through her elite squad’s defenses. If it was the latter, however, they were in serious trouble.
While she had a hundred players, only forty or fifty of them were dedicated damage dealers. Annihilating thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of monsters in two hours was an impossible task.
Lila glanced back down the path they had come, hoping reinforcements would arrive soon. Her strategic thinking was still developing; she hadn't yet fully grasped that waiting for rescue was a passive strategy. Proactive leadership was what won battles.
Case in point: the thousand players sent to reinforce them were already divided, arguing over which path to take.
“We should go through the east forest! We all know that route.”
“No way, we take the southern wildlands path. It’s a bit longer, but the terrain is flat and open.”
“The forest is shorter! We’ll get there faster!”
“The wildlands path will be quicker even if it’s longer, I guarantee it!”
In the end, neither side could convince the other. The thousand-player force split into two groups of five hundred.
The group that took the southern path made good time. Lila’s party had already cleared most of the mobs, and the newly spawned ones were sparse. The group that chose the forest, however, ran straight into a wandering boss that held them up for half an hour. The unluckiest among them were killed, locking them out of high-point combat quests for the next four hours.
Forty minutes after the defense began, reinforcements finally started to trickle in. The rate at which monsters were being killed at the mine entrance began to climb dramatically. After an hour and a half of grueling defense, the last of the eight thousand monsters fell.
[System]: Congratulations to the mine defense force on their successful hold. All participants have been awarded 100 contribution points.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
“Yeah! 100 points!”
“Holy crap, getting points is this easy?”
“I was breaking my back hauling rocks for an hour and only got 9 points.”
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“Man, we should've just partied up with the Crimson Bloom ladies from the start.”
Lila had no time to banter with the peanut gallery. She just offered them a gracious smile and a nod. At that moment, three NPCs materialized at the mine entrance.
The first was a “Mineral Exchange Merchant.” As the name implied, players could trade ore they mined for contribution points.
The second was the “Mine Defense Captain,” who gave out quests to kill monsters in the surrounding area for more points.
The third was a transport NPC, offering a teleport back to the village for the cost of 5 points.
Five points wasn’t much, but it wasn't nothing. For the players who had earned their points through manual labor, it was a steep price. But for Lila’s team, who were all sitting on over 260 points each, it was a bargain for a quick trip back to town.
Lila led her core group back to Starlight Village and reported to Malcolm. “The mine has been secured. Do you have any other tasks for us?”
Malcolm nodded, pleased. “Excellent work. The equipment at the quarry to the north is outdated and needs upgrading. I sent a man named Caldwell to handle it, but he’s run into some trouble. I need you to assist him.”
Lila immediately received a new quest prompt.
[System]: Caldwell at the northern quarry requires assistance. Recommended Party Size: 20 players.
The “recommended” party size was an interesting detail. Lila selected twenty of her best and led them out the east gate, heading north. The road was almost entirely clear of monsters, filled instead with players running back and forth, likely on quarry-related tasks.
Lila was secretly amused watching them sprint to and from the village. The mine had a convenient NPC to turn in materials, but these poor souls had to transport every stone by foot, wasting precious time.
After about eight minutes, they arrived at the quarry. They found an old man sitting on a pile of rocks, sighing dejectedly. A number of players were gathered around him, trying to trigger a quest, but all of them were walking away empty-handed.
Lila approached the old man. “Caldwell? Malcolm said you needed help.”
Caldwell’s eyes lit up. “Malcolm knows? He… he’s not cross with me, is he?”
Angry with him? Lila wasn’t sure what he meant, but she kept a warm smile on her face. “Why would he be angry? He sent us here to help you solve the problem.”
Caldwell let out a long sigh. “I was bringing the materials to upgrade the mining equipment, but I was ambushed by The WarChief’s minions. They stole everything.” He looked at Lila with pleading eyes. “Can you help me retrieve the [Lost Materials]?”
[System]: Caldwell has asked you to retrieve the [Lost Materials]. Do you accept?
Lila smiled to herself. So that was it. No wonder no one else could get the quest. Caldwell was afraid to report his failure to Malcolm. She deduced that if another player had noticed Caldwell’s distress and reported it to Malcolm, they likely would have been able to trigger the quest as well.
“Of course,” she said, accepting the quest. “Do you know where the monsters went?”
Caldwell pointed west. “They headed that way. But be careful. I’ve heard terrifying roars coming from that direction. I fear a Great Bear has made its lair there.”
“Don’t worry,” Lila said confidently. “Leave it to us.”
Not long after Lila’s group departed, another small team arrived, having clearly just come from Malcolm. They approached Caldwell, but were met with a new response: “I don’t need any help right now. Please check back in half an hour.”
***
Lila led her elite team west and soon found their target: a massive bear boss playing in a clearing with two elite bear companions. Next to them was a large wooden crate. The lost materials.
Creeping closer, they scouted the enemies from a distance.
[Grizzly Alpha (Boss)] - Level 30
HP: 20,000,000
Physical Attack: 12,200
Physical Defense: 5,050
...
[Ursine Shaman (Elite)] - Level 28
HP: 5,050,000
Physical Attack: 6,020
Magic Attack: 9,300
Physical Defense: 3,030
Magic Defense: 5,050
Rena moved to Lila’s side. “What’s the plan, Guild Leader? Should we try to pull them one by one?”
Before Lila could answer, a familiar voice echoed across the field from another direction.
“Hey! Big fuzzy bear! Over here—look at me!”
Hazel was already charging forward.