"What the hell squinted his eyes, puzzled, and said, 'So, if we make good use of infinite resurrection, we can just keep fighting without worries? We just need to endure a little pain.'"
WTF rolled his eyes at What the hell's words and retorted, "Sure, we have infinite resurrection, but you still need to be able to deal damage to the monsters! Are we going to keep offering our bodies as dinner to the skeletons relentlessly?"
"Why can't we deal damage to the skeletons? Don't we have any weapons?" What the hell grasped the key point.
"At the moment, the only weapon capable of inflicting significant damage to the skeletons, the stone axe, is broken. We're trying to hammer the skeletons with our bare hands, and it seems like we're the ones losing blood..."
"Well... that's a real problem," What the hell sighed, criticizing, "This game is just too unfriendly to newbies. They don't even give us basic equipment, and we can't even handle beginner skeletons."
Ember Wilde listened to their complaints and felt helpless as well, wishing it were just a game.
"It's up to Ember to figure something out," whispered WTF, glancing at Ember Wilde, who stood not far away.
"He just gave IronBarbie a hint on how to fight the skeletons. I think he might have more tricks up his sleeve. Let's go ask him."
What the hell nodded and followed WTF to approach Ember Wilde.
"Ember... what should we do now?" Ember Wilde really wanted to reply with, "I fucking wish I knew," but as an NPC meant to guide newcomers, he needed to stay composed.
"Don't worry; it's not a big deal," Ember replied calmly, leaning against the wall, contemplating his options.
In truth, this situation was within his expectations. He knew how tough these skeletons were, so charging out to kill all of them wasn't his first choice. His primary strategy was to defend this room, as he estimated that he and the three players could hold out until dawn. However, two conditions needed to be met...
Firstly, the number of skeletons couldn't increase any further.
Secondly, these players had to truly be able to stay and help him throughout the night.
Having played games and gone through dungeons before his time travel, he was familiar with situations where teammates abandoned their quest midway. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence and happened to almost every player at some point. Although players who abandoned their team would face penalties, it still meant wasting Ember's time.
Now, he was worried about this possibility...
If he stayed to guard the room but turned around later to find himself alone, there would be no point in playing anymore!
Thus, it was better to take advantage of the players being online and in decent spirits to solve this task.
As Ember Wilde pondered strategies, IronBarbie resurrected and returned.
"Damn, that first bite from those skeletons really hurt!" IronBarbie complained in his rough voice. "Thank goodness for the game's threshold setting; otherwise, I would've been overwhelmed by all the attacks from those skeletons, and I'd probably be on the verge of a mental breakdown."
With that, IronBarbie was about to leave the room.
"Eh? Bro, you're going out again?" WTF called out to IronBarbie, who was about to open the door.
"Of course! I won't let these skeletons off the hook. How else can we complete the quest?" IronBarbie retorted.
"But... you don't have any weapons now," said WTF.
"Ah..." IronBarbie took a deep breath and withdrew his hand from the doorknob. "That is a problem."
"I told you..." WTF looked at What the hell and shrugged. "You need to crush the skeletons to cause damage, and using your fists won't work."
IronBarbie pondered, "What if I grab one of the skeletons, pin it down, and smash its head against the ground? That should do some crushing damage. But... this would significantly increase the time and energy consumption. I might run out of stamina even after defeating just one skeleton."
Having experienced running out of stamina once before, IronBarbie now included stamina calculation in his battle plan.
"Then... maybe I can kill one skeleton like that, then resurrect, and go after another one?" IronBarbie smacked his lips. "It seems like that's the only option."
WTF and What the hell nodded. They were prepared to resort to a desperate tactic to complete the quest.
"Oh no..." Ember Wilde glanced outside at the respawn point hall and said in a low voice, "Your previous battle with the skeletons attracted two more. Now, it's not just nine but eleven skeletons!"
Ember Wilde's words prompted the three players to turn and check the situation at the respawn point hall. After counting, their eyes widened in disbelief.
This can't be true! The more we kill, the more there are!
"This is bad. I have to work tomorrow, and there's no way I can stay up all night in the game!" What the hell frowned.
"I'm in the same boat... I have an early morning meeting, and according to my regular sleep schedule, I should already be asleep now," WTF agreed.
"I don't have work tomorrow, but I've already made plans to have lunch with a few friends. I was planning to recommend this game to them. I can't stay up all night either," IronBarbie sighed.
Indeed, Ember Wilde's worst fear was coming true... these players were going to abandon the quest.
"We can only take a risk and try," Ember Wilde said, pulling out a chest from under the bed.
Opening the chest revealed a complete set of armor—stone helmet, several layers of fishskin armor, wrist guards, and leggings. Ember Wilde had handmade this defensive gear during his month in the post-apocalyptic world.
Wearing this armor, they would be able to withstand the skeletons' attacks for quite some time. The only regret was that Ember Wilde's weapon had been broken by IronBarbie.
"I knew NPCs wouldn't be simple. Is this chest of equipment meant for newbies? Can we use it?" What the hell asked with excitement, eyeing the gear.
"Hey, why is there only defensive gear? Where are the weapons? It's still not easy to fight without weapons," WTF searched through the chest but didn't find the most critical weapons.
IronBarbie remained calm and waited for Ember Wilde's response.
"This equipment is not meant for you guys," Ember Wilde muttered while putting on the armor, internally criticizing, "A bunch of resurrecting folks, what do they need defense for? It's me who needs it!"
After putting on the gear, Ember Wilde continued, "I have a plan now, which might... quickly solve these skeletons."
The three players immediately focused their attention, eager to hear more.