"As the saying goes, attacking the mind is superior to attacking the city. We need to pull one faction to our side while hitting the other. We can't let them unite into a single rope."
Pointing-Rat-Calling-It-Duck gave his instructions sternly:
"You go personally and make it crystal clear to the brothers: absolutely no bombing civilian houses, no bombing merchants or nobles, and no bombing the bank. Aim strictly for military facilities. If you can find small paths or secret tunnels, even better.
Any brother who contributes will not be mistreated, online or offline. If this operation goes smoothly, I will personally issue their rewards."
At the end of his speech, Pointing-Rat gave his right-hand man, Flying Bat, a look full of profound meaning.
As the Chief of the Action Division of the Secret Police in-game, and the man handling the red packets (cash transfers) offline, Flying Bat had been living the high life recently. But at this moment, sweat began to bead on his forehead.
"The brothers have had a lot of complaints about you lately. You... watch your step." Pointing-Rat narrowed his eyes and whispered.
"Yes... Chief..." Flying Bat swallowed hard, stammering his reply.
He knew he had lost points in front of his patron.
All his wealth and status, both in the game and in reality, came from climbing the ladder with this man. If the Chief decided to kick him out, he would have nowhere to cry.
Damn it, it's all because I got greedy. The Chief gave me 800 for club dues, and I only passed out 80. Flying Bat felt like slapping himself across the face.
He had truly thrown away a watermelon to pick up a sesame seed.
Cursing his own shortsightedness, Flying Bat slowly backed out of the tent. Things had already come to this; he could only pray the moneybags inside would remember his past hard work and let him off the hook.
---
Meanwhile, in Braavos.
Inside a civilian house, thirty players from the Secret Police Bureau who had just logged in were gathered together.
"Alright everyone, the Chief's orders are simple and clear. Just one word: Do it!"
The player Wheel-King, elected as the temporary commander for tonight's operation due to his previous contributions, spoke up.
A map of Braavos was spread out on the table.
The players in the room crowded around.
"Our equipment is limited. Although the higher-ups allocated some operational funds, it was only enough to prepare twenty-five jars of Wildfire.
Fortunately, those guys at the Pyromancers Guild researched a batch of high-explosive charges. They're basically satchel charges—light the fuse and throw them like bombs.
As for weapons, we have thirty crossbows. That's enough for one per brother."
Wheel-King finished speaking and looked at the Vice Commander for the operation.
"The brothers have poisoned all their bolts and blades," the Vice Commander responded.
"Good. Now, let's split up the tasks," Wheel-King nodded and turned back to the group.
"I will lead Team One, consisting of fourteen men. Our target is the Sealord's Palace. Our informant will meet us during the operation. Listen up, Team One:
Aside from the target, codenamed 'Poseidon,' if anyone else appears in your line of sight, take them out cleanly!
If we successfully snatch the target, the two teams will regroup. Team Two will prioritize protecting Team One at all costs, while Team One escorts the target back to the nest with me. Is that clear?"
"Clear!" The players of Team One shouted in unison.
"The remaining brothers will form Team Two, led by the Vice Commander. Your mission is to cause chaos in the city. But remember, your targets are strictly military facilities and armed personnel.
Also, the Chief said it would be best if you could find small paths or secret tunnels connecting to the outside. If not, after we send the signal, all of you must come here to regroup with us!"
Wheel-King pointed his finger at a spot on the map. The players leaned in to look.
"The Long Canal!"
The Vice Commander blurted out.
"Correct. This waterway cuts through Braavos and leads straight to the Fishmarket in the south. Team One will take the target and leave Braavos via the Fishmarket!
At that point, Team Two must do everything in their power to block any pursuers and buy time for Team One to escape," Wheel-King explained.
"Does everyone understand their mission?" After assigning the tasks, Wheel-King asked the group.
"Understood!" The players in the room roared.
"Good. The Chief has ordered that regardless of whether the mission succeeds or fails, every brother participating tonight can pick one piece of equipment from logistics in-game. Additionally, everyone gets a 5,000 RMB red packet offline. The brothers in Team Two who stay behind to cover the retreat get 6,000!"
Wheel-King enunciated every word clearly.
The faces of everyone in the room instantly lit up with battle lust.
"It won't be that guy 'Six Devils' handing out the money again, will it?" A player suddenly asked.
The atmosphere in the room instantly became awkward.
"Six Devils" was the nickname for Flying Bat. The guy had been incredibly arrogant lately—taking bribes, gatekeeping, and worst of all, blatantly skimming the guild fees and operational funds the Guild Leader sent for the brothers.
The players of the Secret Police Bureau hated his guts. Since he always acted deep and mysterious, thinking he was some cool movie character, the brothers privately called him "Six Devils" (a derogatory term implying he was a traitor/scum).
"Ahem. After the operation is complete, the Chief will issue the payments personally," Wheel-King cleared his throat and personally put their worries to rest.
"Damn, that's good then. That Six Devils bastard... relying on the fact that he followed the Chief early, he thinks he's some founding father or something. Walking around with a long face all day, skimming our money. What a piece of trash!"
"Exactly. Motherfucker, if I see him in real life, I'm gonna beat his face until it looks like a peach blossom!"
The players in the room began whispering and cursing.
"Alright, we're all taking the Chief's salary here. If it's not related to the mission, save it for later. You can talk all you want once the money is in your pockets!"
Wheel-King clapped his hands, cutting off the chatter. A player extinguished the lamp, and the crowded, narrow room plunged into darkness.
---
Meanwhile, on the front lines.
"Fuck! Charge again! Damn it, I don't believe we can't take this shitty little island! Tell the brothers: whoever kills their way up there first, I'll reward him with one hundred grand!"
Storm-Cloud-Split shoved aside his vice-guild leader, Steam-Bun-Immortal, and screamed orders at his players.
The players, who had been retreating with dirt on their faces, realized the Guild Leader was truly furious.
One hundred thousand RMB?
They didn't need to say another word. They turned around, howling like wolves, and launched another suicidal charge across the river.
The soldiers of the Windblown and the Pentos City Watch looked at these players in shock.
"Gods above... did His Grace train Unsullied? This is their sixth charge! They must have lost hundreds of men already!"
"They are true warriors!"
Even the Tattered Prince didn't hold back his praise.
Little did they know, under the cover of night, the players who were shot dead by arrows simply wiped their faces, stood up, and were soldiers once again.
Thanks to the little fire creature's continuous "improvements," players now had to re-customize their character's appearance after respawning. The system called it "making the game more hardcore," and most players didn't mind.
However, rumor had it that after this update, players lost the advantage of respawning on the spot (corpse rushing). They could now only choose the nearest Barracks or their initial spawn point.
This caused quite a bit of grumbling among the ranks...