On his way back, Zen killed several more green slimes using his hit and run technique. He almost had a free trip back to the starter town when his health bar fell to an alarming five percent after one scuffle. It was unglamorous, and Zen felt ashamed of getting bullied so badly. Then again, he could not be blamed. Who could expect getting ganged upon by three consecutive waves of green slimes out in the open? Their respawn rate was too quick, and Zen barely got away from them.
If he had to make a comparison, these slimes were almost as powerful as medium-sized dogs. Zen really was no match against those animals, and he groaned, feeling pain everywhere. Thankfully, this wasn’t real, or he would be bruising badly with some cracked bones as he bandaged himself.
First aid was a handy skill to have, and Zen was thankful that he did not procrastinate to complet
Charlie and Remi replied at light speed. Zen was still crafting his advanced healing salve when they demanded to know his location.Unable to leave the chapel until he finished his task, Zen told them to meet him in the chapel of the very first spawn town. He was surprised to hear that they were both on the fifth floor but knowing they had two combat powerhouses in their party, it wasn’t very surprising. Party Freedom was a rather well-balanced mix of members who could cover each other’s blind spots, and Zen was tempted to ask if Jessica and Benjamin wanted to join too. However, he decided against it for now.After all, he still had yet to hear from the Seer about the new information he discovered about NPCs and side quests.Father Clarence was busy minding his own business when two newcomers visited his
“How long have you known about the existence of side quests?” Charlie threw his arm around Zen’s neck to wrestle him into a light chokehold position.It wasn’t very difficult for the Gambler to give the short gamer a noogie as payback for keeping all the good information to himself while everyone else fumbled like clueless bats in this virtual dungeon game.Zen apologised and begged for mercy when the taller teen offered no reprieve from the chokehold. It did not hurt as much, but it was definitely uncomfortable. Sadly, not even Remi pitied him. If anything, the insomniac might propose doing it himself to take out his obvious frustrations on Zen.Father Clarence gave out the quests like what Zen mentioned, and after receiving their first side quest, Charlie let Zen go.
Liu Feng and Akiko were tense. He had no idea what happened between them earlier, but Liu Feng’s general expression changed when he heard Zen.“There you are!” the Seer smiled gently and took a real look at Zen before reaching out to pat Zen’s head softly.“You’re a lot shorter than I thought you were now that I can see.”His statement made Zen freeze. “What do you mean?”Akiko tilted her head to one side. Didn’t Zen tell Liu Feng to make his area boss drop into an accessory because he knew what it could do?Liu Feng paused. His smile faltered. Many questions hovered in everyone’s minds. Misunderstanding deepened, and this time, there was no way for them to con
“Nobody can be certain of the truth from a watered-down source,” Zen told them. “I have reasons to believe that while the claims of the Gorski’s family’s children experimentation and torture are true, there is more than meets the eye.”Liu Feng and Akiko held their breaths as Zen explained his perspective. From analysis, the scientists from the Gorski family fit the criteria as curiosity-driven individuals with a desire to solve many of civilian’s problems. They were one of the Godfather’s most loyal supporters of wanting to do good as guardians of their territory. However, not many people believed them after the truth of their results were leaked.Even so, Zen’s theory was only a theory. Without concrete evidence to clean the Gorsi family’s crimes, knowing the truth was useless.
Putting aside Damian Gorski’s matter, for now, the trio finally cleared up all the bad air between them since morning.“You can have the one with higher efficiency,” Liu Feng tossed the advanced healing salve to Akiko. “I’ll be happy with the one my little brother made.”Zen blushed at how Liu Feng phrased things. Sometimes, he wondered if this long-haired older brother was conscious of what he was doing. If he was a lady, he would have fallen for Liu Feng.Akiko did not bother arguing. She might not need this now, but it was better than arguing with the Seer when he was feeling possessive. Zen was grabbed by the waist, and Liu Feng jumped down from the tree with the small gamer tucked neatly under one arm like an attempted kidnapping right before her eyes.
Unsurprisingly, Zen finished Father Clarence’s quest first. However, Remi and Charlie were still far from reaching their quota. Akiko and Liu Feng did not mind helping Zen to gather a few more slimes when the teen said he wanted to collect a few more green goo for salve crafting practice.More was better than less, and Remi decided he couldn’t go on anymore. For every five slimes he killed, there would only be one or two that dropped goo. Something was strange. Zen killed way lesser slimes than they did, leaving most of the slime horde to them, but he finished his quota first.As Remi and Charlie rested, the tactician observed Zen, who requested smaller groups of slime to be sent his way so that he could conserve his stamina. Swinging a short sword also took a lot of energy, even if his movements with the sword were getting better. He did not see hi
Tired but not defeated, the trio turned in their quests to Father Clarence as the clergyman entertained two newcomers asking to assist with his chores. Zen witnessed how the NPC requested more cloth to make bandages, sending Akiko and Liu Feng away to complete the quest.From the conversation, Liu Feng managed to make the clergyman like him a little more as they bonded over a discussion about pressure points to massage to relieve fatigue. The Seer even offered to give the priest a shoulder rub, and Zen had to admit his sworn brother was a charmer of women, men, animals and NPCs.The smug smirk on the long-haired man’s face told Zen that he got what he came for even though he would still complete the quest he accepted to learn a first aid skill that Zen encouraged them to learn.Akiko did not have much luck ear
“How are you feeling?”Zen groaned. Honestly, he felt like this was the worst sleep he had so far. Father Clarence was looking at him with eyes of concern, wondering what the boy did to return to the church this soon. Didn’t he mass craft the healing salves?Suffocation and drowning were probably some of the more terrifying ways to die. Honestly, Zen preferred to die from fall damage or get beaten up until his HP dwindled away. It would not be as brutal as smelling slime butts. Even getting shot to death might be slightly better. It was less embarrassing if Zen ignored how he died semi-naked.“Terrible,” Zen groaned as light stabbed his eyes. Reviving in the chapel was a rather odd experience. There was way too much light coming in from the stained glass window beside him, and Father Cl