Chapter 8: Her theory is confirmed!
[Capitan Hat! Grade: Epic Durability: 100/100]
[Lv. Requirement: 12]
[+10 Charisma, +250 HP.]
[Unique effect(Epic): Skeletons, who were in Jan's troops before his death, won't attack you while wearing this hat. You will be able to see their location on the map.]
Alex wasn't fond of his second epic item.
Although it gave a fantastic charisma stat and an excellent HP, Alex found the hat uncomfortable. He often raised his hands to correct it, but that was far from helpful. Instead, it made him fix the hat more.
The unique effect was pretty nice, though.
On his minimap, Alex saw many red dots. Those white skeletons wouldn't attack him, and he would be able to clean them up quickly.
However, as his level went up, Alex found those skeletons much weaker. Other than the boss or other capitans, who else could pose a threat to him here?
Of course, those skeletons were around his castle's grounds.
If he went beyond, Alex would find much more enemies. For example, the hungry demons.
Alex was curious about them.
Fortunately, Sara and Celia were there.
"They are no different than skeletons. They return after we kill them. But, their strong point is that they have intelligence and their memories stay intact, even if we kill or purify them," Sara explained.
Alex nodded, "I assume you level up on them?"
"Yes," Sara nodded.
And before Alex asked another question, Sara said, "Are you curious about my low level?"
"Yes," Alex didn't have to hide that.
He was already level twelve, and that was after the first day.
On the other hand, Sara had level twenty-five. Her daughter was level one, but that was not surprising at all.
However, the Avander World's change happened two years ago.
In other words, the residents had two years to prepare for the players' arrival.
Alex didn't know much about it, but Sara gently explained it all.
"It is probably due to our parents' bloodlines, but we were given a chance to level up," Sara looked to the past.
When the world changed, and the gods' blessing swept through them and their lands, the residents had received the most shock. Of course, that was arguable, as many monsters appeared across the lands.
But residents quickly found out that their powers halted.
Those who were level one couldn't level up at all. Their skills' proficiencies could still go up, but just barely. The progress was close to non-existent.
But some NPCs received a chance.
"Reset your levels and skills, and level up from scratch," Sara parted her lips with a melancholic look.
Back then, she had so many thoughts about the world's change.
It was the embarrassing matter that her inward desires became quests that she could give to players, but the chance that had appeared to her gave her new ideas. She and her husband could level up.
They had more means than most NPCs.
They could stand up on their feet and not rely on players at all. Instead, they could have their own ground and work for a more fantastic future.
But then, Sara's father came with the news. He dropped heavy event, and her whole life changed again.
"I've reset my level. And my other sisters did the same. It still took us some time, but we have been on our own for two years now. As far as I am concerned, I have been leveling up for more than one year and a half now," Sara said.
Alex understood her situation, but as the young man, he couldn't hide his emotions that well.
One year and a half, and she was just level twenty-five.
It looked like there was more to it.
Sara saw his face, but she remained silent.
Alex scratched his chin with his thumb, pondering deeply, "I think… you need more EXP to level up than players… You are a peculiar resident, after all."
"Looks like our fate to support players is set, no matter whether we are unique residents or not," Sara uttered with a bit of self-deprecating tone.
A heavy mood unfolded between them.
He squeezed his brain and replied after a short break, "You girls lack the last puzzle. That puzzle is me. Let me catch up to your level, then we will see level up together. I am sure we will fill each other's weaknesses and soar."
His optimism was infectious as Sara's eyes lit up with hope. It wasn't like she had never thought about her father's successor and what he could bring to their lives. But as he said it himself, Sara was more hopeful than ever.
She thanked him for cheering her up with her genuine smile, putting down Alex in one place as he could only stare at her with a similar smile.
Their relationship progressed steadily.
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"How did you summon that skeleton?" Sara asked.
She and Alex were outside the castle. They were surrounded by the skeletons, whose red eyes remained calm.
No skeleton pointed their weapons at them, so their talk was peaceful.
Alex remembered the Skeleton Capitan then clicked on the system messages. He had a quest log, and his other notifications were stored up here, too, "It was the combination of my class and Deathwill's Castle."
"The lands that stretch far beyond what we see… I am confident those lands store enemies that my father faced in his prime," Sara stared at the faraway dark mountains with narrowed eyes, holding her spear tightly.
She turned her eyes to Alex and smiled faintly, "That's just my theory based on what you've shared with me. While I know no one named Cain, the name Jan is familiar. If I am correct, my father clashed with them. He won and killed them all."
Alex nodded.
The killing was a light topic in the Avander World. People were killed for all reasons, and it was common to have wars here. It was the perfect layout for the gaming experience as players could take many sides.
But Alex still found it uncomfortable, solely due to his short experience with Sara and Celia.
Of course, residents never took killing innocents as the light topic. They also condemned vile practices, such as necromancy and other things requiring many lives to boost an individual or group's strength.
Sara said her theory, "We don't know what price or techniques my father used to send his castle and prepare the successor. We don't know this place too… The sky is dark, clouds are always black… It's like the night is always here… Dullahan part likes this environment, but my human side yearns for the sun."
Alex glanced at her, then patted her shoulder, "I can leave, so you girls will be able to leave with me soon. Your theory is also good. We must face your father's past and grow stronger by going through his enemies.
I fear that hungry demons might be not the only intelligent beings, though," Alex replied.
Sara then chuckled, "But as you can see… There are a few fewer skeletons than before. I had killed a few of them before you logged in."
She was lucky enough to kill skeletons that used to be in Jan's troops.
Because of it, Sara confirmed something useful, "White Skeleton from Jan's troops will no longer respawn. That's sure because you have killed their general. In other words, this land hides much more bosses for you to level up quickly."
"That must be the case!" Alex nodded with a broad smile, his eyes shining, "I should get a different sword. You girls must have looted every skeleton here, right?"
"Of course we did," Sara gave an encouraging and confident smile, then the second day of hard work began.
But as it was a fantasy world, Alex never found it boring. He practiced parrying against many opponents and other valuable stuff.
He then found another Skeleton Capitan!
"Let's do it," Alex sneered.