Chapter 53: A Level 3 Player? Suspicion

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: A Level 3 Player? Suspicion

Seraphina Sullivan really hadn’t wanted to get involved in the rescue. There was no need to go looking for trouble.

It would only increase the difficulty of surviving the instance.

However, as she observed, she noticed something interesting.

Seraphina now stood in the shadows of an abandoned building, coldly watching the three people surrounded by the Bee Swarm.

She hadn’t wanted to get involved.

In this cruel Disaster Game, a bleeding heart would only get you killed.

However, when she scanned them with her [Eye of Resume], she discovered some surprising information.

"Justin Brooks?" Seraphina Sullivan raised an eyebrow, recognizing the sturdy young man desperately using his Ability to erect a Stone Wall.

’I can’t believe he became a Player too.’

Data materialized before her eyes:

[Name: Justin Brooks]

[Level: Level 1]

[Gender: Male]

[Professional Skills: Talent: Wall: Can create Stone Walls out of thin air for defense and offense.]

[Weaknesses: Too kind]

Seeing "Too kind" listed as a weakness, Seraphina was stunned for a moment before a helpless smile crossed her face.

She knew Justin Brooks was a soldier, but she hadn’t expected him to stay true to his principles even in a time like this.

In this dog-eat-dog instance world, kindness was indeed the deadliest of weaknesses.

But for some reason, she felt a flicker of respect for her neighbor.

Not everyone could maintain their principles in an environment like this.

Her gaze shifted to the blondie:

His name was Harvey Parker, and his Talent was Danger Prediction, allowing him to sense approaching danger.

’Not a bad Ability,’ Seraphina assessed silently, but seeing the calculating glint in his eyes, she immediately judged him to be untrustworthy.

But when her gaze fell upon the trembling, bespectacled woman cowering behind Justin Brooks, the data that appeared left Seraphina somewhat astonished.

[Name: Tina Lewis]

[Level: Level 3]

[Gender: Female]

[Professional Skills: Talent: Insect Master: Can control insects.]

[Weaknesses: Terrified of sour things! Can’t even watch others eat them.]

’Level 3?’ Seraphina’s heart skipped a beat.

This was the first time she had seen a Level display in another person’s data.

And this person had actually reached Level 3!

How could this not be suspicious?

’Level 3... How is that possible?’ Seraphina mulled it over.

’I’ve gone through two instances, and I’ll only be able to reach Level 2 after this one is over. And I was in the first group of Players from Azure Star to enter the game. There’s no way any Player could be a higher level than me.’

Her mind flashed back to the very beginning.

When the bizarre mechanical voice randomly selected Players across the globe, Seraphina clearly remembered being one of the first to be chosen.

According to the system’s rules, Player Level was raised by accumulating experience points from completing instances.

And the amount of experience from each was fixed.

Logically, no one should be able to surpass her Level at this stage.

’Unless...’ Seraphina’s eyes sharpened. ’She’s not from the same batch of Players who entered the game with us.’

Her mind ran wild with possibilities—parallel worlds, and then these individual instance worlds.

’Could Tina Lewis be a Player from another Cataclysm World?’

This was just Seraphina’s theory; she couldn’t be sure.

What was even more concerning was her [Insect Master] Talent.

In an instance themed around an insect disaster, this was practically a god-tier Ability!

Watching her act so meekly, like a helpless, clinging vine...

Seraphina narrowed her eyes. ’Is she a wolf in sheep’s clothing, or something else? I’ll know once I meet her.’

Then, Seraphina appeared before the three of them.

Justin Brooks looked on gratefully at the mysteriously dressed figure before him.

Seraphina was currently wearing a black windbreaker. Worried that Justin Brooks would recognize her, she also had on her Anti-Poison Mask prop.

Previously, Seraphina had encountered a type of insect whose bodily fluids could dissolve clothing, and her clothes had been destroyed in the fight.

This reminded her of a piece of clothing she had made in the previous instance using her [Tailor] Profession.

[Parasitic Windbreaker]

This garment couldn’t be destroyed. As long as it was fed meat, it could restore any damage. Seraphina had also tried feeding it insect corpses, and that worked for repairs too.

"Why did you provoke the Bee Swarm?" Seraphina asked.

Justin Brooks didn’t know what to say.

Should he say it was the fault of the two people behind him?

Justin Brooks looked at the other two.

Seraphina looked over as well.

Tina Lewis seemed to sense Seraphina’s gaze.

She looked up, and their eyes met through her lenses.

In that instant, Seraphina clearly saw a flash of calmness and calculation in her eyes that was completely at odds with her fragile appearance.

"Th-thank you for saving us..." Tina Lewis said timidly, her voice as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, but Seraphina didn’t miss the fleeting, strange smile at the corner of her mouth.

"You’re welcome," Seraphina replied calmly, but alarm bells were screaming in her head.

She decided to bide her time and see what this mysterious Level 3 Player was plotting.

Justin Brooks wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Overusing his Ability had left even this well-trained soldier exhausted.

He thanked Seraphina sincerely, "Ma’am, thank you so much for your help."

Seraphina waved a hand, her wary gaze sweeping over the increasingly dense Bee Swarm. "It’s too early for thanks. We should get out of here, fast."

Seraphina looked into the distance. She was certain this Bee Swarm was even more dangerous than the Spider Queen and her brood she had faced before.

The buzzing of wings in the air grew louder, and the massive, dark Bee Swarm looked like a living thundercloud, appearing and disappearing within the red mist.

Justin Brooks nodded and immediately helped the weak Tina Lewis to her feet. "Okay, we’ll follow your lead."

Harvey Parker said nothing, his face grim, but his feet moved faster than anyone else’s.

Meanwhile, a flicker of disappointment, almost imperceptible, crossed Tina Lewis’s eyes.

She kept her head down, seemingly clinging to Justin Brooks’s sleeve in fear, but inwardly she was seething with frustration. ’What a pity... It’s impossible for me to control the Queen Bee, that Insect Speaker, this time.’

She gritted her teeth in secret.

She had paid a huge price to return to this low-level instance, [The Insect Frenzy].

If she had succeeded in controlling the Queen Bee, she would have gained the ability to manipulate the entire Bee Swarm, which was crucial.

But now, Seraphina’s sudden appearance had interrupted her, and the plan had to be put on hold.

What infuriated her even more was that she had to keep up her Disguise.

If the system discovered she was an Advanced Player who had illegally entered a low-level instance, the consequences would be unthinkable.

At best, she would be stripped of all her Abilities; at worst, she would be erased completely.

"This way," Seraphina said, leading them into a narrow alley.

She appeared focused on leading the way, but she was secretly observing Tina Lewis’s reactions.

The flicker of disappointment in Tina Lewis’s eyes when the Bee Swarm appeared had not escaped her notice.

’Just as I thought, something’s wrong...’ Seraphina sneered inwardly.

She deliberately slowed her pace to walk alongside Tina Lewis. "Are you all right? You look very pale."

Tina Lewis feigned being startled and shrank back behind Justin Brooks. "I-I’m okay... just really scared..."