No longer paying attention to the nonsense of the undead, it was time for dinner. Lind, nine soldiers, and Aluna ate in shifts.
The players didn't receive this treatment. They didn't seem to care much, though—if they were hungry, it was no big deal.
It seemed like the undead were planning an exploration outing tonight.
They had delayed it earlier due to building houses, but now the timing was perfect.
Lind casually assigned them a patrol mission. There might be unexpected gains at night, and he knew that the calamities carried materials that could "explode," great ingredients for crafting Magic Potions.
Later, he'd issue a task to the players to gather these, resulting in both new assignments for the players and Magic Potion ingredients for himself—a win-win indeed.
The main reason he wasn't issuing the task now was that the players weren't strong enough to defeat a calamity—it would be a total cakewalk for the enemy.
When the savory meat soup bubbled in the cauldron, spreading its aroma, Aluna couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
She controlled her expression very well, which is why Lind trusted her acting skills so much.
Always squinting her bulgy eyes hard at others, her wrinkled face expressionless. Only when talking about the Sun Church did she show piety and the pride of being a Believer.
But Lind knew very well—and so did Aluna—that there were no gods anymore, and all the prayers were just to scramble for a bite to eat.
Aluna wanted to scrounge for food through her "Believer" status at Lind's place, while Lind wanted to use Aluna's "Believer" status to scrimp food from the players.
As the spoon stirred in the cauldron, Old Pete grabbed his bowl and scooped forcefully from the bottom.
What a heaping spoonful of meat!
Aluna was thrilled—it must have taken wiping out quite a few rat nests to gather this much.
But in the next instant, she felt the power of a chef called "Shake it Off."
Old Pete gave the spoon a shake, and what clattered back into the pot wasn't wolf meat, but the shattered heart of Aluna dripping with blood.
"Ladle a bit more meat for Aluna!" Lind was all for respecting the elderly.
Reluctantly, Old Pete scooped a bit less than half a spoonful of meat. He felt that his dignity as a chef was being challenged. Dishes not shaken off the spoon don't have a soul, and they don't taste as good either.
But once Lind had spoken, between "loyalty" and "dignity," he resolutely chose the former.
Aluna received her bowl of meat soup. The dried rat meat in her pocket suddenly seemed less appetizing.
Her wrinkled lips approached the soup bowl, heedless of the steam scalding her face, and slurped a mouthful.
Hot! It scorched her tongue.
But it was delicious, so delicious that tears welled up.
"Milord, you hit the nail on the head. Just from today's meeting, they truly deserve the title of God's Knights."
Looking at the old nun's eyes brimming with tears from the hot soup, her tongue hardly able to straighten, and not forgetting to craft her words, Lind was inwardly moved.
This talent, truly not unearthed in vain!
Lind asked, "How could you tell?"
He knew very well that the players were either Knights of God, enemies of God, or might even be God themselves.
Players, obviously, have daunting backstories.
Aluna: "…"
Must it be this way? I just ate a bite of your meat. Don't insult my dignity as a nun. Must you really praise? Do you have to? It's so difficult!
Even the soldiers standing nearby with bowls waiting for their meal turned their heads.
As natives of this world, Old Pete and nine other soldiers had once truly believed in the Sun Church, had heard whispers from the gods, seen the Pope's lecture tours, and listened to the choirs' anthems.
However, when the Ring of Magic shattered and the gods no longer responded, the soldiers, in their despair, turned from staunch believers into staunch atheists.
Now, hearing both Lind and Aluna say the Undead were God's Knights, they not only found it appropriate, but they actually thought, "What kind of gods, such kinds of knights," which seemed absolutely right!
They all wanted to hear what high views Aluna had.
Lind felt the same way because he sincerely recognized the identities of the Undead, so he wanted to get more secrets and information from Aluna, which he might use to deceive players in the future.
Lind, positioning himself as a "core," "village chief," "justice" NPC, would never allow himself to lack lines.
The performance effect in front of players is very important.
"I swear by my faith in the gods and the honor of a clergyman," Aluna bowed her head to sip her soup and nibbled on a piece of meat, mumbling unclearly, "no one, nothing can make me lie!"
Eat quickly, lest the words you speak later displease and you get no more soup.
As for swearing? Ha, as if faith is such a convenient thing!
"As you mentioned, if they could rise from the dead, there have truly been legends of them in history," Aluna gazed eagerly at the soup pot, having already finished one bowl.
"Fill it up!" Lind didn't mind.
This time without Lind's instruction, Old Pete fully displayed the chef's supreme skill of "shaking it off," as he shook off all the meat from the spoon under Aluna's eager gaze and ladled the soup into her bowl.
Aluna looked quite plaintive, staring at the clear broth in her hand that reflected like a mirror, and said in the tone of an old nun reminiscing about the past, "The resurrected knights, followers of one of the Three Gods, the 'Grim Reaper' Za Za, once helped a kingdom erased by time. The Death Knight was very powerful, legend has it he could destroy a city with a single sword strike."
Her point was simple, those perverts trying to lift her skirt couldn't possibly be knights of the Grim Reaper, they couldn't even match a tiny toenail of a Death Knight!
Given their strength, let alone destroy a city with one sword strike, they probably couldn't even beat the soldiers at Star Dragon Ridge.
But Lind didn't think so, ah. Players could level up by killing monsters; it might be difficult for one player to destroy a city with a single sword strike in the future, but a group of players surely could.
He genuinely felt Aluna's explanation made a lot of sense, although he knew the Undead players appeared here because of the game, not because of divine actions, but this perspective of explanation was awesome.
He'd copy that idea.
As for the "gods" of this world, of course, he knew them, very well indeed, especially since the mainstream god could not be avoided until doomsday came.
Legend has it, in the beginning of the world, there was neither death nor life until that flame appeared.
Three beings gained power from the flame and forged the Ring of Magic from the fire of life.
Under the light of the Ring of Magic, people could draw power from it and elevate themselves.
The most famous was 'Sun's Testament' Leo the Lion, the god of all knights, warriors, and merchants, representing fairness, bravery, and fearlessness, the most mainstream god.
The statue of the 'Storm Knight' that Lind saw in the Sun Church in Prey Town, the one propped head down over a massive sword, was one of the Knights of the Apocalypse under the command of 'Sun's Testament' in legend.
'Moon Witch' Yuni was the god of Magic, the god of Wisdom, also the god of mages, witches, curse casters, and thieves, representing mystery, wisdom, and schemes, a god with thresholds, not to be worshipped by the foolish.
'Grim Reaper' Za Za was the most mysterious, having few believers. Everyone couldn't escape Him, nobody wanted to get close to Him, but ultimately, everyone would rush towards Him.
There's also a saying that there were originally four among the Three Gods, it was the fourth god who forged the Ring of Magic with a thunderous hammer and even carried the Ring of Magic on his shoulders, enveloping the whole world with its power.
As for credibility... not high, because there are also legends that say the Three Gods were actually five, six, seven, eight, with various sects eager to cram their own "God" in, bind to the "Trio of Gods" to ride on their coattails, letting the Three Gods boost their profile.
Lind felt that the mythical part could also be explored, to be used later to tell stories to players, believing that no player could resist "a piece of hidden history," in plain language called "hidden plots."