---Third POV---
After Hedgehog's two failed attempts, no one else dared to waste the precious opportunities to explore the mine twice.
Once he was comforted, the group pieced together the accounts of the eleven players who had ventured into the mine. They finally gained some understanding of the situation underground.
The Blackrock Toads' hatchery was indeed close by. They had barely dug two steps in the direction Hawkes had provided before they broke through to an existing tunnel.
This appeared to be the so-called entry passage for the broodmother. The tunnel was filled with branching paths, leading to unknown destinations.
The Blackrock Toad eggs were hanging on either side of the passage. Dense and numerous, they looked like countless pairs of pitch-black eyes.
The newbie players, each more dramatic than the last, described the scene vividly.
"You guys have no idea how terrifying it was! Those eggs actually glimmer!"
"When we lit a torch, I almost had a heart attack!"
"Anyone with trypophobia should steer clear!"
"I'm never going back down there again."
"Those things even move! When weapons hit them, they just go soft, completely impossible to deal with!"
"Plus, they can freely manipulate the hardness of the surrounding area! Hedgehog got punched by one of those eggs!"
Everyone couldn't help but glance at the person sitting in the center, seemingly on the verge of transcendence.
Hedgehog stared wearily at the horizon.
"I can't believe I lost to a fertilized egg…"
Looks like the blow was really severe.
"Don't give up, Hedgehog!" LootGoblin slapped him on the shoulder. "It's just a 'first-timer killer,' you know? We've lost to monsters plenty of times before!"
Though they had been venturing out of the safe zone more frequently lately, most players didn't even have time to fight back before dying when encountering monsters.
Two failures were nothing.
"You don't get it," Hedgehog exhaled a virtual puff of smoke. "This time is different…"
This wasn't a monster, it was a fucking fertilized egg!
Seeing that nothing could console him, LootGoblin gave up. He rubbed his chin, pondering.
"Actually, if we analyze it carefully, the only special ability of the toad eggs is softening nearby objects. They're just basic Level 1 monsters. We can definitely deal with them."
Apple pressed further, "Do you have a plan?"
"Of course!" LootGoblin grinned wickedly. "Fire types are natural counters to bugs! Hedgehog failed because he's water-type from the sewers. Dousing the toad eggs with water obviously didn't work! But I can bake that underground tunnel dry! Those eggs can only burrow so far into the walls!"
He spent 20 magicoins at Hawkes' place to buy a Silk Cocoon Armor, transforming into a walking firestorm as he charged into the mine.
His loud, arrogant voice echoed from below for a long time.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha, it's finally springtime for fire types!"
The newbie players exchanged uncertain glances. They looked at the still-echoing cavern and at Hedgehog, who was brooding alone.
"Are they… going to be okay?"
Apple sighed and held his forehead. "Let them be. This is an exception. Most of us veteran players are still normal."
The difficulty of clearing out the mine's monsters was far higher than they'd expected. It really wasn't easy playing without a resurrection cheat… Suddenly, a newbie player shouted in surprise.
"My bonus experience points just increased a lot!"
Everyone swarmed over.
"Let me see!"
"Wow, it's gone up by 10 points!"
"If you can gain this much experience just by getting beaten up for ten minutes, why would I even bother venturing outside the safe zone to die?"
Apple froze. "Could this place turn into a dungeon farming spot?"
The bonus experience and the potential for revival materials as rewards were far better than anything other tasks offered.
Immediately, some newbie players couldn't hold back and wanted to buy a Silk Cocoon Armor on credit.
This was also a privilege Viktor had given the newcomers, allowing them to purchase their first two Silk Cocoon Armors on loan.
It accelerated their progression to Level 2, enabling them to contribute more effectively to The Watchers.
The newbies were so thrilled their eyes turned red.
"Let's go!!!"
"For the sake of leveling up!!!"
The sound of their stomping feet whipped up a gust, leaving Apple and Thor standing there, utterly disheveled.
They looked at each otherm, and cursed in unison: "Damn it!"
When they had leveled up to Level 2, they'd done an entire day's worth of hard labor!
"No way, we're getting in on this action too!"
They rushed to line up for Silk Cocoon Armors, only to be stopped by Hawkes shaking his head.
"The slots are full. Wait for the next batch."
Though Hedgehog's priority access had been used up, and the mining restrictions had eased significantly, the narrow tunnels still couldn't accommodate all the players at once.
Disappointed, the two could only hug their heads in regret. Why were they always late to the party?
---
Outside the Great Oak Forest, under an abandoned cellar filled with dry grass, a bunch of people fell in like dumplings into soup.
Plop!
Thud!
Some sprawled on the ground, knocked out, while others groaned in pain.
Lux rubbed her sore backside.
"Ugh! Why does a high-level teleportation array still drop us from midair? That hurt!"
Child, lying on the ground with dead-fish eyes, groaned. "You got off easy. Help me get these people off me. I'm about to… cough… I can't… wheeze… breathe…"
Why was he the first one teleported, only to have everyone else land on top of him? The group finally helped pull the nearly suffocated Child out from under the pile.
Half an hour later, the unconscious captives woke up from the straw heap. They looked around in confusion. At first, they were at a loss, but soon their expressions turned to shock and joy.
"My head hurts…"
"How did I get here? Wasn't I in the goblins' dungeon?"
"This is Hollow's Edge! Haha, we're finally out!"
"We're saved!"
After their brief astonishment, they immediately began running toward the nearest town they remembered. Staying too long on the wasteland was a death sentence, every adventurer knew this rule.
This marked the end of the players' rescue mission.
Farther behind a dirt slope, watching the successful completion of the first mission, NeverShowOff snapped his fingers. "Mission one complete!"
Garble peeked through the gaps in the grass. "They seem to remember quite a bit. We can follow them to find the route to Nary Town."
Although Viktor had given them a general direction, having guides was undoubtedly more reliable than vague verbal instructions.
NeverShowOff nodded. "Let's wait until they've gone a bit farther. Otherwise, we might get discovered."
With Garble in the team, there was no fear of losing their target.
Lux took a deep breath of fresh air. His heart was still pounding with excitement.
"So this is what a new map feels like? The world suddenly seems so big!"
The outskirts of the forest were different to the dense interior, barren and desolate. Even in summer, there were hardly any plants aside from the tough grass.
But for Lux, who had been staring at green visuals for over ten days in eye-soothing mode, this barren landscape was absolutely thrilling!
"I heard there are quite a few vagrants in the wilderness. Let's behave more normally."
According to the descriptions from the forum, the vagrants in the wilderness were like a pack of hyenas lurking in the dark, ready to pounce.
They especially loved robbing travelers who looked naive and loaded with money, very difficult to deal with.
NeverShowOff nodded in agreement. "Exactly, we can't afford to head back without even reaching a town."
Garble squinted his eyes slightly. "They're taking a turn. Let's go!"
The four of them responded immediately, flipping down the slope.
Their movements were precise and orderly, almost like a perfect one-to-one replica. This kind of coordination was honed during battles with goblins.
Swift, concise, and effective commands and actions were the key to maximizing benefits, a strategy widely promoted by players.
The mountain breeze swept across the hilltop.
An old man, thin, dark-skinned, and with sharp, wolf-like eyes, appeared at the spot where the players had been lurking.
He stared for a long time in the direction where the players had disappeared. Taking the smoked yellow pipe out of his mouth, he slowly exhaled a smoke ring.
"Something big's about to happen…" The old man turned around, looking at a cellar poorly covered with dried grass. Shaking his head, he carefully re-concealed the cellar entrance.
Then he sauntered away toward a shabby thatched house on the far side of the hill, which seemed ready to be blown apart by the wind at any moment.
---
Inside the iron mine, Apple stared in disbelief at the dried-out insect eggs on the ground, roasted until they were shriveled.
"Holy crap! Fire attacks actually work?!"
Although LootGoblin's first attempt also failed, he lasted much longer than Hedgehog, an impressive half-hour!
This allowed Apple and Thor to squeeze into the mine dungeon afterward and witness the first Blackrock Toad egg being dealt with.
Thor took a deep breath. "Could it be that the Fire-type players' moment has finally come?"
The insect eggs could slightly move within the tunnel walls, even merging a certain distance into them. If you dug, they retreated; hard attacks were useless. But roasting them through the wall? That actually forced the nearby eggs out!
The eggs weren't afraid of water, light had minimal effect, and physical weapons turned useless upon contact.
Only fire could work.
LootGoblin wiped the sweat from his forehead. Despite the side effects of excessive mana consumption, he couldn't hide the smug grin on his face.
"My Fireball spell is Level 2. You think it's some ordinary spell? I told you, Fire-types naturally counter Insect-types!"
Killing one insect egg directly netted 30 extra experience points. Throwing the defeated egg into his game inventory, he reignited his flame. "Don't stop me, today, I'm leveling up to 11!"
Cackling maniacally, he charged toward the tunnel filled with the highest concentration of insect eggs. The other players exchanged glances and hurried after him. They might not be Fire-type players, but who said torches weren't fire? The temperature might be lower, the effect weaker, but it still worked for killing monsters and leveling up.
"Charge!!"
"For the job change!!"
"To pay off the Silk Cocoon Armor loan!!!"
"Demacia!!!"
A series of clangs and shouts echoed through the mine tunnels. With precautions in place, they were no longer so easily ambushed by the eggs. As long as their Silk Cocoon Armor wasn't breached, they could keep farming the dungeon endlessly!
---
Outside, Viktor had just arrived at the quest hub to inspect the recent price fluctuations of various goods in town. Only a dynamic and balanced economy could ensure long-term stability and existence.
And then, he witnessed the price of dry firewood skyrocketing from 3 sticks for 1 magicoin to 1 stick for 3 magicoins.
The source? Orders placed remotely by players in the mines through private messaging.
"Oh?" he chuckled. "Looks like they've found a way to deal with the Blackrock Toad eggs…"
The handling difficulty of Blackrock Toad eggs wasn't supposed to be high, it was deliberately designed as a beginner's task for newbie players.
At least at the start, it was.
Later, though…
He trusted that players' learning abilities were no weaker than the enhanced Blackrock Toad eggs.
He adjusted the prices of other goods that had risen due to the firewood demand spike. Then he glanced at the map gradually being scanned and updated by the players venturing into the egg-infested tunnels.
The sheer number of eggs inside would make most people's scalps tingle. After some thought, he opened the quest modification panel.
"When the egg count drops to 30%, raise the mining dungeon entry requirement to Level 5 or higher!"
Looking at the adjusted quest settings, Viktor felt satisfied. After all his self-taught programming, writing new game logic was becoming second nature.
Once the scanned images were uploaded, the system would automatically tally the egg count and adjust the quest requirements accordingly.
"It's starting to feel more and more like a proper game system…"
He couldn't help but marvel. The game system framework was steadily becoming more complete. With more players flooding into Honeyvale Town, the place was transforming rapidly. Just the variety of cold weapons players had optimized or crafted themselves exceeded a dozen types.
Basic infrastructure like restaurants, inns, clothing shops, public restrooms were all taking shape. Although material shortages were still significant, the town was barely self-sufficient if they stretched things.
A thriving scene…
"Lord Viktor, here are yesterday's magicoin transactions and the warehouse inventory movement list." Cobb entered with a bundle of parchment.
Behind him was Alyanne, who had just returned. She pressed her hand to her forehead in frustration. "Apologies. Here's also last week's damaged item report and the factory construction applications from the members."
Viktor's previously good mood was instantly brought back to reality.
He sighed. "Put them on the right."
He almost forgot, with the thriving town came an ever-growing pile of administrative tasks for him, the lord, to handle. Noticing the dark aura of their undead boss, the two quickly placed the documents on the corner of the desk and hurried out.
Staring at the paperwork that didn't decrease but only grew, Viktor silently comforted himself, "Once the clueless players deliver the letter or find Edgar, things will get easier…"
The four players, on whom such high hopes were pinned, were still making their way to Nary Town. Several small gray dots darted across the desolate plains.
---
As the sky gradually darkened, Lux finally lost his patience. "How far are we from Nary Town?"
Even the most novel map gets boring when you'd been forced to look at it all day.
"Shouldn't be too far now," Garble said, looking at the gray dots ahead of them.
"They haven't rested much along the way. If they were planning to camp overnight, they wouldn't be in such a rush."
Child tilted his head back and gulped down the last drop of water from his bottle. "Let's hope so. The distance between towns is ridiculous!"
"Well, it is the frontier. If they were closer together, it'd just be asking for trouble," NeverShowOff replied, wiping his sweat.
"Even Edgar takes a full day to make a round trip. Long distances are only to be expected."