Vol.1 - Chapter 6 – Xia Ya, do you dare to come back!
The scene was exceptionally gruesome; the jungle witch was utterly obliterated.
Brains and blood splattered everywhere.
Milorakles was a level 12 elite witch. In a fair fight, it would take at least five combat professionals of the same level to match her. But caught off guard, all it took was one strike from Sanya.
A level 13 Berserker, two points stronger than Sennia. The battle ended before it even began.
Of course, since Xia Ya won the fight by using an NPC, he gained nothing from it—not a single experience point. And he could forget about getting a share of the loot from Sanya. Barbarians are straightforward like that, more possessive of loot than a dog with a bone.
But Xia Ya wasn't interested in the witch's pitiful loot anyway.
"Take your spoils; we should head back," he said.
—It's crucial to emphasize "your spoils" here, or the sensitive barbarian might just leave you behind.
After all, the contract was over, the employment ended, and Sanya still needed to take him back.
Sure enough, hearing Xia Ya's emphasis, Sanya was in high spirits.
She picked out the bits and pieces from the witch's remains and brain matter, wiped them on the ground, and bundled them in her outer garment.
"Let's go, back home!"
...
The villagers were already waiting at the western entrance. Xia Ya's reputation in the Starter Village had plummeted to rock bottom due to the "assault on the guards" incident, even making Sennia, who rushed over upon hearing the news, half-doubtful.
Enke West tried to embrace his wife, but she glared at him coldly, forcing him to stand dejectedly with the village chief.
He sensed something was amiss but couldn't pinpoint what went wrong.
Besides the NPCs, there were players who came to watch the commotion.
"Did you hear? Someone brought an NPC and beat up Captain Maden of the guards."
"Was it a player or an NPC?"
"Probably a grudge between NPCs... what player could be that wild?"
The crowd buzzed with speculation. Among them, the jojo trio, who had just exchanged goat milk for the "Power Strike" skill, exchanged shocked glances.
—Could it be him again?
They had a hunch it was Xia Ya once more.
Amidst the crowd's attention, the main character made his entrance.
"You dare come back!"
Maden, wrapped in bandages, shouted angrily.
Enke's healing spell had saved his life, and now his face had deflated enough for him to speak.
With Maden's roar, over twenty guards stepped forward in unison, forming a human wall to block Xia Ya and Sanya outside the village.
"You're not welcome here, Xia Ya," the village chief said sternly, his gaze lingering on Sanya.
"As for you, you may continue to stay, but you must take on the responsibility of defending against monsters."
Sanya, like a victor, gave Maden a provocative glare, making him stomp his feet in anger.
"Village Chief, this..."
The village chief gave him a single glare, and Maden obediently backed down.
"Leave before we decide to expel you, Xia Ya. You can go to another village," the village chief said.
The guards all looked over, and the players present watched with interest, whispering among themselves.
"Is this guy crazy? Starting off with such a stunt..."
"But how did he hire that barbarian? Can NPCs be hired? She looks so strong, she could take on ten of me..."
"Maybe it's some hidden quest, too bad he messed it up."
...
Facing the crowd intent on expelling him, Xia Ya bowed slightly to the village chief in gratitude, then spoke.
"Thank you for your mercy, Village Chief, but before I leave, please allow me to defend my actions."
"No matter what, your violent actions won't be forgiven! GET OUT!" a militia member shouted.
Xia Ya ignored him and walked straight to Sanya. "In light of our past battles together, may I temporarily borrow your spoils?"
Sanya happily agreed, opening the bundle, releasing a waft of blood.
Xia Ya took out a bloodstained bell and gave Maden a friendly smile.
"What are you smiling at!?" Maden roared.
"I remembered something happy."
Xia Ya shook the bell.
Jingle.
Maden's body stiffened, standing straight like a puppet, his head tilted.
This was the witch's control over him.
"Turn around, hit him."
Xia Ya instructed.
As soon as he spoke, Maden turned around in confusion and punched Enke the Priest in the face!
The originally fractured wrist made a "crack" sound, bending at a terrifying angle. The pain brought tears to his eyes, but he couldn't utter a sound.
Jingle.
The bell rang again.
"Chase him, hit him again."
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Maden, unable to control his body, chased after the fallen Enke, raising his fist, but was stopped by the suddenly appearing Sennia.
"Xia Ya!"
Sennia glared at him, and Xia Ya reluctantly stopped, but at the same time, he righteously glared back, as if complaining why Sennia stopped him.
This left Sennia defeated, avoiding his gaze guiltily.
"Step back," Xia Ya commanded.
Maden complied.
Xia Ya tossed the bell on the ground, spreading his hands. "That's it, Village Chief. With your vast experience, you should understand what this means, right?"
Others might not know the village chief's backstory, but he did.
Strictly speaking, this person wasn't even human. He was a light-forged puppet created by the Church in their long history of fighting monsters, full of wisdom, as hard as iron, without prejudice or selfish desires, always maintaining justice.
But this also made him lack a bit of humanity.
In the eleventh cycle, the only time with a Bad Ending, Xia Ya proposed a showdown with him to become the village chief. After losing, the village chief calmly self-destructed, leaving behind the collected information for Xia Ya, teaching him how to be a village chief.
The village chief walked over to Enke, helping him up.
"Use 'Purification' on Captain Maden."
Enke didn't dare delay, opening his toothless mouth, chanting the spell with a lisp.
A milky white light fell on Maden, making him shake like a leaf, as a wisp of black gas emerged from him, forming a ghostly face in the air, screaming fiercely.
This thing was identical to the "Seed of Calamity" in Synlos's Nest, but the difference in level was like night and day.
The village chief placed two fingers on his temple, glaring at the black gas. Two beams of white light shot from his eyes, directly exploding the black gas.
Only then did Maden collapse limply.
With the truth revealed, Xia Ya instantly transformed from an enemy to the village's savior. Although the militia still looked at him with some resistance, there was a hint of respect.
Completing just this one hidden quest gave him enough reputation to leave the village. Now he only lacked the level.
The normal process involved twenty to thirty side quests to win over everyone in the village.
With the matter resolved, everyone dispersed. Sanya even received a commendation from the village chief, exempting her from rent for a month.
The barbarian approached Xia Ya, thumping her chest—her own, as Xia Ya would be killed by a punch from her.
"You, Sanya's friend."
"My honor."
Xia Ya returned the gesture, then said, "My friend, please tell Miss Sennia about her disgrace, so this matter can be resolved. After that, you can still have 'beauty.'"
Though she found the method a bit underhanded, Sanya complied for Xia Ya's sake.
She went over and said a few words to Sennia, whose expression was both helpless and heartbroken, wanting to argue, but Sanya directly pulled down Enke's pants, revealing a human skin mask from his crotch.
"Disgrace."
She tore the mask apart, spitting on the ground.
Sanya wasn't mocking Enke, but rather Sennia.
In her eyes, Sennia was a strong person, yet she was played by such a weak "beauty," which was simply unacceptable.
Of course, Sennia understood this too, but emotionally, she couldn't come to terms with it, her heartbroken appearance eliciting a protective instinct.
Xia Ya glanced at her twice and then looked away, not out of coldness, but because he had seen it too many times.
He had lost count of how many women he had pursued in his 177 cycles, but it was a lot.
He found it hard to truly invest emotionally.
Because he knew in the end, all of this would be erased, forgotten, leaving him alone in silent sorrow.
He had thought of being like a tragic hero, watching over a girl each cycle, telling her the stories of his hundreds of cycles. But while it sounded simple, after three or four times, he could no longer persist. Every time, the two would be deeply in love one moment, but in the new cycle, the other's unfamiliar gaze would drive him mad, eroding his longing for beauty bit by bit.
Ultimately, only calmness and numbness could keep him alive, believing he was a person, not just a piece of data.
At this moment, the village chief approached.
Xia Ya turned appropriately, meeting the village chief's equally calm gaze.
Proofreader & Editor: Lyra