Listening to that "soulful" speech, Lind fell silent.
"..."
Charging forward without preparation, how reckless, perfectly fits the stereotype of players.
Since they can't die, they aren't afraid of death, that's how Calamities should be.
"His body turned into a pile of ashes and disappeared without a trace."
"That must be a magic monster!"
"It could be a Calamity!"
The soldiers were very nervous, all talking at once.
It was indeed a Calamity, even known as the fourth Calamity. Nevertheless, Lind was in a good mood because he might obtain a tireless worker who couldn't die, provided he wasn't mistaken for a monster himself and eliminated.
"Understand the traits of the players—I used to be a player myself. Although I don't have a system, I am very clear about their style of doing things."
What kind of style do players have? That's to have no prohibitions!
They can nobly give up everything or evilly sacrifice everything.
They would travel thousands of miles to deliver a letter, ignoring all hardships and obstacles.
Similarly, they can also find it amusing to draw a sword and kill the teammate who had fought by their side just moments ago.
They are chaos itself, because to them, this is all just a game.
"To those on watch, be vigilant," Lind couldn't fully explain the traits of players to the soldiers, so he instructed, "Keep an eye on that person, and any other strangers that may appear. Notify me immediately."
Players are like cockroaches—once one appears, a whole swarm will follow. He didn't want Star Dragon Ridge to be treated like a Monster Stronghold and farmed.
"Yes!"
"The rest of you, after eating, take turns on watch," Lind tightened his coat, "Those who are free for the moment, get the broken clothes and those useless swords, shields, and whatever else from our storage. Whether they're useful or not, gather them all and do a quick cleanup."
"Yes!"
Star Dragon Ridge had five buildings—one for dining and rest, one was Lind's residence, one for the other nine soldiers, one was the storehouse, and one was an empty room carelessly filled with junk.
Lind returned to his own room.
He wanted to research the official website but realized first that he hadn't registered an account, and to register, a mobile phone and email verification were needed… Being in another world, he couldn't register and could only play as a visitor.
That's not right either. If he ever got the chance to get a phone number and an email... It seemed highly unlikely, better not to count on it.
The remaining sections of the platform were empty.
Only a few people in the discussion area were questioning whether the game actually existed, finding no worth in researching it.
He pulled out the box hidden under his bed.
Unlocking the box, on top was a letter.
"Tione," also known as Lind's "ex-fiancée," the two of them being nobles were already engaged, but Lind had been dispatched to this border outpost.
According to the normal course of events, although he was ostracized, he would have been able to return within three to five years leading military merits and succeed to the Baron's title and marry Tione. Although he would never enter the center of power, securing a position within Rand's First Infantry Regiment wasn't difficult, since his "big brother" Prince didn't become the King, but rather his sister did and became the Queen.
The letter came from two years ago, sent by Goliath from the capital, 'City of Gold'.
In the letter, Tione said she had been chosen as a church official, but after that, she never sent another letter, and with the shattering of the Ring of Magic that brought great changes, they lost contact completely, and naturally, that "romance" also ended without illness.
Lind took out paper and pen, leaning over to write and sketch.
The appearance of players, though unexpected, provided him with many ideas. Avoiding the obviously "main character" players was realistic, but he could potentially use their influence to his advantage.
"I wonder if they can level up by fighting monsters and whether they need to do quests. Looking at Loves White Silk's expression at the time, it didn't seem like he was given a quest," Lind suddenly felt a bit impatient. He should have kept the players around to observe them properly and then design targeted strategies.
Lind quickly penned down his thoughts: "First, determine roughly how many players there are; second, their capabilities and needs. I probably can't provide them with experience... but they certainly need weapons, food, medicine, and other resources, as well as places to rest. I must also strengthen my own power, otherwise, it's likely they could just kill me once they've grown stronger... but I am not a player, I can't level up by fighting monsters."
Since coming to this world, he had killed wolves but hadn't gained experience or leveled up, only remembered the delicious taste of the wolf meat, which he could not forget.
In a short while, he had written several sheets of paper.
After taking another close look and finalizing his current action plan, Lind burned the papers, quietly watching the flames turn all his words into ashes.
Leaving written evidence could likely end up in the hands of a player, which was unsafe.
Knowing this world was a game and that he himself was considered an NPC by players was, Lind thought, his only advantage.
"My lord!" A soldier knocked on the door, his voice carrying fear, "Lord, the one with green hair has returned!"
Loves White Silk stood before Lind.
Still only wearing a piece of white cloth shorts around his lower body, shivering from the cold, yet his face flushed with excitement.
"My lord!"
Loves White Silk spoke excitedly, "I've found the trails of those wolves, but there are too many of them, and they're too dangerous, I have no weapons or gear..."
As he spoke, his eyes turned to the single-handed sword at Lind's waist, sparkling with eagerness. Clearly, he wouldn't mind suddenly making a move to snatch the weapon. However, considering the differences in their size and equipment, he restrained his thoughts.
Lind didn't mind using his gaze to warn him to behave, but he suspected it was futile as players, when pushed to the brink, might choose to delete their accounts and start over.
He calculated in his mind: "It would take half a day to respawn, considering the respawn point issues, maybe respawning could take even less time."
This was terrifying already. If there were no consequences for the player, it was simply another type of Calamity monster.
"I think we have some matters to discuss," Lind addressed him, "Would you like a bowl of hot soup?"
"Can I still eat?" Loves White Silk rubbed his stomach, nodding eagerly, "Yes, I'll eat!"
The cramped and dilapidated cabin couldn't contain Loves White Silk's curiosity, who, upon entering, touched here and there, curiously like a fool.
Old Pete had been restraining himself until he saw Loves White Silk reach for the fire.
"No!" Old Pete tried to stop him but was too late.
"Ah!" Loves White Silk clutched his hand as a piece of charcoal fell to the ground, rolling around in pain on the floor, "F*ck, that's hot, it's killing me!"
Lind: "..."
Old Pete: "..."