Chapter 61: Interlude 2: Resolve

TAP TAP TAP—

Herbie’s leg twitched restlessly, bouncing completely out of her control. She didn’t dare to take a single bite of the hearty breakfast delivered by the Village Chief.

Upon waking up, she had entered an exceptionally terrifying world. Although Audrey’s expression was blank, the gloomy aura radiating from her whole body was overwhelmingly oppressive.

Blaze, who had caused all this, stood outside the door looking entirely unconcerned.

"Au-Audrey, do you want to eat... eat some beef to replenish your strength..."

"I don’t eat beef."

"Oh."

Blaze crossed his arms, frustrated with himself for being too hasty. But they didn’t have much time.

He looked at the 86-year-old Village Chief, and the Village Chief looked back at him with an indescribable expression. He recalled what had happened last night.

After an unknown duration of silence, when Romeo was shivering from the cold, Blaze had finally managed to speak up.

"How do you deal with those who undergo Werewolf Transformation after losing their purity?"

He had asked a very foolish and redundant question, but he simply didn’t know what else to say.

"Silver Believers with dominant genes, like Romeo, will kill them."

Blaze couldn’t help but glance at Romeo again. The boy was somewhat quiet and sad, but more than anything, he was resolute.

"It is their request."

"But they aren’t always successfully defeated before the Pure Blood in their bodies is completely defiled. Combat strength after Werewolf Transformation is determined by age." The Village Chief pointed at himself, telling a joke that no one could laugh at. "In my case, I’d become a Level 86 Werewolf."

"There’s also the difference between dominant and recessive traits. Recessive Werewolves are closer to Frenzy-driven Wild Beasts, while dominant Werewolves are closer to humans driven to Madness. Their combat strength increases significantly," Romeo added.

"But regardless of the type, the defiled blood in their bodies makes them constantly howl at the moon, begging for God’s forgiveness. The Effect within the Sacrificial Stone Forest is the best for this, so Werewolves almost never leave there."

"Silver Believers head to the Priest Stone Forest when they feel their lifespans coming to an end. So that’s how it is. Almost all of you are Arcadians with dominant genes, and you become exceptionally powerful after defilement. That’s why you trap yourselves in the Sacrificial Stone..."

Blaze abruptly turned his head to look at Romeo. The incredibly frail, silver-haired boy wrapped in the Nemean Lion Skin revealed a heartbreaking smile.

"Yes. I am here to take the final step."

Blaze opened his mouth but made no sound. This cowardly youth frankly stated that his death was approaching, and he even wore a smile of pure happiness. If one wasn’t a Blessed One, they only had one life. Once they died... they were dead.

"I won’t be able to speak anymore after my Werewolf Transformation. That is the proof that the blood in my body has begun to defile. That is why Juliet and I came here together.

"Being able to walk the final path alongside the one I love... I have no regrets."

For some reason, Blaze felt annoyed, though he didn’t know where this anger came from.

"How old are you?"

"I just turned sixteen." Romeo lowered his head humbly. "Sir Knight, you seem to be much older than me."

He was only one year older. Blaze clenched his fists.

"Why not endure it a little longer? Your life will end because of this!"

Romeo scratched the back of his head in mild confusion, showing a bright, innocent smile typical of his age. "It can’t be helped. The blood of the Silver King Lycan flows through our veins. How could we possibly suppress the urge to love?"

Blaze looked at the Village Chief, who smiled freely.

"An Arcadia Werewolf’s love belongs to only one master. I also loved someone once, but that person died before growing up."

Even though the Sunshine was bright, Blaze couldn’t help but want to sigh. Then, a short little girl with Red Hair put her hands on her Waist and yelled at him in his memories.

"People who sigh all day can never achieve great things!"

Of course, this little girl wasn’t actually there.

"Marika, I’m not just standing here sighing..."

In his reply to the Fairy Kingdom, he had requested the powerful guild to find a way to stop the Foreigners from Witch Hunting in the Arcadia village. This might be asking too much, but it was the only thing he could immediately do for those who inherited the Pure Blood.

***

Constipation Chat Group

ID: Constipated Druid

[Everyone, I found an incredibly effective enema!]

ID: Constipated Doctor

[Have you gotten so perverted that you’re sharing which brand of enema tastes best now? Even though this is the Constipation Group, and we’re all perverts here, and we respect your kinks, we still need some boundaries!]

ID: Constipated Juggler

[An enema is meant to be shoved up the ass. You have to lube it up first and then insert the pointed end.]

ID: Constipated Druid

[I mean I’ve found a way out for Vice Players who are stuck like constipation.]

[I met Herbie Hermes, the Advanced partner of Hermes’ Travel Hat, in Wolf Head Grass Village!]

ID: Constipated Chef (Group Admin)

[I saw the clip from your livestream. You got banned by the super mods later for explicit content. I hereby dub you the Vanguard of Perverts.]

ID: Constipated Druid (Vanguard of Perverts)

[That’s not the point. The point is that Hermes signed a contract with me (Video Link).]

ID: Constipated Lumberjack

[I checked the lore settings. NPCs aren’t supposed to provide any services at all.]

ID: Constipated Doctor

[Holy shit, this isn’t an enema! This is a high-pressure colonic, a crazy eruption, a human fountain!]

ID: Constipated Lumberjack

[If the NPC’s Intelligence isn’t high enough to scam us, then Herbie Hermes can liberate the playstyles of Vice Players and allow us to reach a higher level!]

ID: Constipated Doctor

[I don’t even know how many Level 99s I could’ve reached with the Experience Value I’ve hoarded. I just can’t fulfill the conditions to unlock a Profession because of my Vice Value.]

[Thinking back, I haven’t even done anything so unforgivable. I get Vice Value just from killing a random Wild Beast!]

[Damn it! It’s all because I couldn’t resist the temptation of the Vice Goddess (A gloomy, seductive older sister with huge boobs, purple eyeshadow, black stockings, a leather skirt, and leather boots)!]

ID: Constipated Lumberjack

[With Herbie Hermes’s promise, we can even form a guild entirely made up of Vice Players.]

[Good thing your stream got cut because you leaked fluids. We can’t let anyone else know about this intel.]

ID: Constipated Druid (Vanguard of Perverts)

[I’m a girl, okay? A beauty streamer! Stop bringing that up. Anyway, I was thinking we should all log in and sign a contract with Hermes first.]

ID: Constipated Juggler

[I might be a bit late. I still have some paperwork to approve.]

ID: Constipated Artist

[What time?]

ID: Constipated Druid (Vanguard of Perverts)

[Oh my—even Little K is bubbling up. Let Big Sis shower you with some love~]

ID: Constipated Artist

[No. Stinky.]

ID: Constipated Chef

[Give me two minutes! I’m about to make the suspect confess everything!]

ID: Constipated Doctor

[I’m ready to be flushed out anytime! I must shoot out all my hoarded Experience Value!]

ID: Constipated Lumberjack

[I’m in possession]

[position*]

ID: Constipated Druid (Vanguard of Perverts)

[@Everyone, 2 PM outside Wolf Head Grass Village. Make sure not to interact with any NPCs other than Hermes.]

ID: Constipated Druid (Vanguard of Perverts)

[Umm... before that, can anyone recommend a cost-effective VR Game Pod?]

ID: Constipated Juggler

[So you really did leak fluids. It wasn’t just for the stream’s effect.]

***

"Boss! I know where that NPC Hermes is!"

The Viking Foreigner brought good news to the little girl, who was in a foul mood after their team was wiped out by a Werewolf ambush.

"Really?!" The little girl immediately perked up.

"A streamer I follow bumped into Hermes in Wolf Head Grass Village, though she got banned right after for explicit content."

"The streamer you follow... isn’t that the Vice Player named Greenland? She wouldn’t have killed Hermes first, would she?"

"No, she’s just challenging the gameplay mechanics as a player."

"Then she must be a pro. I heard that the vast majority of people who choose to be Vice Players can’t even get past the Newbie Village," the Detective Foreigner chimed in.

"Because Vice Players have a hard time leveling up, they’ve almost all developed various playstyles that rival bosses. They can hold their own against Level 99s when they’re only around Level 60."

"None of that matters. Let’s hurry up and head to Wolf Head Grass Village. Don’t let Hermes get away!" The little girl excitedly threw herself onto the Viking’s back, dangling and swaying around like a pink little backpack.