Su Xuan took off his VR headset, gasping. Ivsha's voraciousness was becoming too much for him to handle.
'Is this what a Succubus is like?'
'Good thing it's just in the game...'
'Wait a minute...?'
'Why do I feel drained in the real world, too?'
A shiver ran through Su Xuan's body as he marveled inwardly, 'What a terrifying Succubus!'
'She can even affect reality!'
As for what exactly Natasha was hiding, he would have to carefully peel back her layers of disguise and see for himself.
While this didn't affect the quest's progress, he still wanted to help Rosaline find that Memory Fragment if he could—preferably by peaceful means.
'Ten o'clock already?'
Su Xuan glanced at his phone. He hadn't realized it was already 10 PM. He must have lost track of time while he was 'rewarding' Ivsha.
'I have to get up early for work tomorrow. I need to shower and get to bed, fast!'
「The next day.」
Su Xuan went to Liu Ling's noodle shop again. After enjoying a steaming hot bowl for breakfast, he threw himself into his work.
The rush lasted for a few hours before things quieted down. Su Xuan sat down to rest, mentally calculating the Guild's current assets.
After completing several quests and deducting expenses, Su Xuan found the Guild account had 80 Silver Coins remaining. Of that amount, 70 were just being held temporarily for a Player who would get them back upon completing a quest.
However, he'd waited two days without hearing anything from the Player, which was starting to worry him.
'It couldn't be that...'
AHEM!
'Maybe it's just a difficult quest that takes a few days to complete.'
After all, the quest he was currently on had already lasted two days. He needed to speed things up; the storyline was dragging on a bit too much.
"Food's ready!"
While Su Xuan was lost in thought, Liu Ling brought over steaming hot dishes.
This time, Liu Xue emerged from her room on her own to eat on time, but she came with a purpose.
She deliberately sat down next to Su Xuan and said softly, "I went to the village granary like you said, and sure enough, there was a Fiery Fire Rat leader there. After I killed it, a common-quality weapon dropped."
"Just a common-quality weapon?" Su Xuan raised an eyebrow.
'But I got a Rare quality weapon and a Flame Gemstone to drop,' he thought.
"And a Flame Fragment! It can be used to temporarily enchant a weapon, and it's worth about 5 Silver Coins on the market!" Liu Xue continued, her eyes filled with adoration and gratitude for Su Xuan.
"That's pretty good."
Su Xuan smiled, but he was thinking, 'So the same hidden Elite monster can drop different loot?'
After lunch, Su Xuan was busy in the shop for another two hours until around four in the afternoon, when he finally got off work.
Another 300 in the bank today. His wallet was slowly getting fatter.
After returning home, Su Xuan didn't immediately enter the game. He felt a bit tired and wanted to take a short nap.
He set an alarm for an hour later, which was right around his scheduled meeting time with Roxia.
...
「Meanwhile.」
As the Knights of the Yerman Clan assembled and prepared for the upcoming Oath Knight selection,
Roxia's uncle, Mero, slipped back to his bedroom.
The moment he closed the door, a dark shadow silently appeared behind him.
The shadow reported to Mero, "We have arranged everything, just as you requested."
"Excellent." Mero gave a cold smile. "As long as my son becomes an Oath Knight, you will be handsomely rewarded."
"I took your job, so I'll see it through to the end," the shadow replied. "But shouldn't we be worried about the Knights from the other families, not just Roxia? Thanks to your help, I've already acquired a few decent Undead!"
"How can that rabble compare to a Knight trained by the Yerman Clan? The Yerman Clan may have fallen, but they can't be so easily surpassed," Mero said with a soft laugh.
"Very well. I will proceed as you've instructed."
"Mm," Mero nodded, then continued, "But Natasha hired some Adventurers. Could they interfere with our plans?"
"You don't have to worry about them!"
The shadow spoke with complete confidence. "I've already checked out that Guild President. His rating is a mere F+, while I was promoted to E a month ago. How could he possibly be a match for me?"
"If you're that confident, then my mind is at ease."
Mero relaxed upon hearing this.
A cold glint flickered in his sharp eyes. He muttered in a low voice, "Roxia, don't blame your uncle. If you become an Oath Knight, you'll never be able to escape the Curse branded upon our bloodline! Ten years ago, your mother completed her task. Now... it's your turn!"
...
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
Su Xuan woke up right on time as the alarm blared.
He quickly splashed some water on his face, then put on the VR headset and entered the game world.
When Su Xuan arrived at the Guild, he found Ivsha was missing. Only Rosaline was there, completely engrossed in a puzzle.
He glanced at the time—9:05. He still had about twenty minutes before his meeting with Roxia.
'Was Ivsha held up by something today?'
He was puzzled. Usually, Ivsha would have already been sitting in the Guild by now. Could something have held her up?
Just as he was wondering, the Guild's main doors were suddenly thrown open, and Ivsha rushed in.
"Mr. Su Xuan, I'm sorry! I'm late!" Ivsha said, panting slightly.
"It's fine, you're still early," Su Xuan said calmly. "Did something happen at the church today?"
"Mhm."
Ivsha nodded and continued, "For some reason, the Baron wanted to see all the Nuns in our church."
"Nothing else?"
"No. The Baron just took one look at everyone and left," Ivsha added.
"..."
Su Xuan frowned slightly. He felt that something was off, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was. It looked like he'd have to pay a visit to the church after finishing today's quest.
"Let's get going. We need to finish the Sunset City quest first."
"Mhm!"
With a flash of light, Su Xuan arrived once more in Sunset City.
When they arrived outside the Yerman Clan's Castle, they saw a group of the clan's Knights, geared up and ready to depart.
"Mr. Su Xuan! You're finally here!"
A joyful smile spread across Natasha's face when she saw Su Xuan arrive.
Of course, his employer was the only one who came to greet him. The other Yerman Clan Knights didn't know him, nor were they particularly interested in Adventurers. They were even baffled by Natasha's decision to hire one.
Roxia, meanwhile, was busy with other matters and had no time to spare.
"Are we leaving soon?"
Su Xuan walked up to Natasha, admiring her beauty.
Today, Natasha wore a light brown, puffy dress. The Sapphire Necklace on her snow-white neck made her look all the more elegant and dignified, and the deep valley it rested in exuded a unique Charm.
"Yes, we leave in about ten minutes," Natasha nodded, smiling as she continued, "I'll be counting on you to handle your designated area."
"Alright."
Su Xuan agreed, his gaze sweeping over the contingent of Yerman Clan Knights.
He noticed that most of them were between Level 5 and 8. Knights above Level 10 were in the minority, with only two or three above Level 15.
Simply put, even though Rosaline was only Level 10, her Attributes and special traits meant she could probably solo this entire group of Knights!
Ten minutes later, the Yerman Clan's procession began to move out toward the selection grounds.
Su Xuan followed closely behind the procession. Of course, he didn't have to walk. Natasha's carriage had just enough room for four. It was a bit of a squeeze, but he didn't mind cuddling up next to Ivsha.
Soon, they arrived at the site of the White Rose Ceremony.
However, before they could even get out of the carriage, Su Xuan was captivated by the sight in the distance.
He stared in astonishment at a gigantic white Rose floating high in the sky...