Blacksmith Shop.
"You... how do you know about this?" The dwarf furrowed his brow, eyeing the man in front of him shrouded in a black cloak, emanating an air of mystery.
For some reason, his treasured Red Dragon Blood Armor had come to this man's attention, who had offered a handsome price to buy it, naturally stirring his interest.
But what concerned him more was how this man had come to know about it.
"Your destiny is written in the stars," Xi Mu said with a low head and a light laugh, stretching out his hand, "Selling me the Red Dragon Blood Armor is fate."
This dwarven blacksmith possessed armor that had been stained with the blood of a Red Dragon, which was the armor of the dragon-slaying hero, Kamor, from five hundred years ago.
In terms of performance, there were armors available at the same price that were superior to the Red Dragon Blood Armor, but the hidden attributes of the Red Dragon Blood Armor specialized in defense against dragons.
If one wished to slay a dragon, purchasing the Red Dragon Blood Armor was naturally a bargain.
"Are you an Astrologer?" asked the dwarf blacksmith, his grip on the hammer relaxing slightly in the presence of the enigmatic and elusive man, who indeed possessed the qualities of an Astrologer.
In response, Xi Mu nodded calmly; the identity of an Astrologer was very useful for second playthrough players, or even those on their third or beyond.
Why he could learn of various secret pieces of information in advance was easily explained by adopting the identity of an Astrologer.
After all, the destiny of humans in this world... no, of all life, is mirrored in the stars, and anyone with the requisite ability could observe the destiny of all beings.
From birth to death, it was clear at a glance.
"Are you trying to propel someone's destiny?" the dwarf muttered, "You Astrologers always revel in creating heroes and epics."
"No, I am to create my own epic." Xi Mu shook his head, raising his hand to point at himself, "The dragon-slaying hero will be me."
"...Ah... hahaha!" The dwarf was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter. It was amusing for him to see an Astrologer, who usually created heroes, wanting to become the hero themselves. This intrigued him and momentarily dispelled his inner vigilance.
"An Astrologer who wants to become a hero, that's quite rare indeed."
"Since one aims to create a hero, why not become the hero oneself? It saves trouble," Xi Mu explained.
The dwarf thought it over and felt it made sense.
Rather than going through the painstaking effort of manipulating destiny to make a chosen individual's fate veer in the desired direction, it seemed much simpler to take on the role directly and become a hero of legend.
Of course, doing so meant the Astrologer would have to enter the fray themselves, and if they lacked the necessary strength, they would likely die on the path to becoming a hero.
But if one had sufficient ability, then taking matters into one's own hands was clearly more efficient.
"Anyway, sell me the Red Dragon Blood Armor, and in the future, when I write my story, I'll include a mention of you," Xi Mu said, pulling out a bank card from his cloak.
The dwarf hesitated slightly, eyeing the bank card before him, but chose to accept the card that was handed over. Why not make money if one could?
Not to mention the opportunity to feature in a hero's story later on.
"Wait here." He placed the hammer on the table and turned to walk into the back of the smithy, bringing out a set of armor.
This set of armor was silver in color and bore many scars. Every joint from head to toe was well-protected, wrapping the wearer securely.
Unlike other games where less fabric meant higher defense, this game's armor was designed with rigorous care in the early stages.
Getting hit in an unprotected area really did lead to injury.
"It's the real thing," Xi Mu tapped on the Red Dragon Blood Armor and started putting it on. Sometimes the dwarf selling the Red Dragon Blood Armor would present a fake to deceive players, who would foolishly pay up only to realize something was amiss later, by which time the dwarf would have already absconded with the money.
Even if one sought revenge, it would require reaching a later part of the main storyline to find an opportunity for retribution.
"Don't worry, dwarves are the most honest," the dwarven blacksmith slapped his chest with a boisterous voice, seeming very proud of his honesty.
To this, Xi Mu was noncommittal, promptly paid the money, and an amount of wealth that could make one rich for life was wiped out in the swipe of a card.
However, thanks to a gift from Anastasia, he still had plenty of money in another bank card, enough for his short-term expenses.
"Customer, I hope to see you succeed in slaying the dragon next time," said the dwarf with a beaming smile, watching Xi Mu turn and leave without hesitation, waving warmly at him.
He did actually intend to pull out a fake Red Dragon Blood Armor to fool the other party and test whether he really was an Astrologer.
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He still didn't want to take the risk.
And now, he was very satisfied with this decision. The other party had clearly noticed his ulterior motive and spoken it out, pretending it was an unintentional remark.
If he dared to produce a fake Red Dragon Blood Armor, using the Astrologer to manipulate fate and lead someone to a dead end.
He probably would have been in big trouble.
At the same time.
On the street.
Xi Mu raised his head to observe the sky, identified the direction, and slowly increased his pace, beginning to run.
Naturally, he couldn't possibly succeed in slaying a giant dragon right now, the gap in their attributes was just too great. Even if he exerted all his strength to inflict damage, it wasn't as fast as the dragon's healing rate.
So, the plan was to raise his own level first, then find an opportunity to kill a dragon, and change his job to become a human with the power of dragons.
And now, he decided to go and complete a side quest first.
…
"Princess Anastasia, run away!"
With a frantic voice echoing through the wandering forest, a young girl with golden short hair, holding up her elegant gown with both hands, ran out from the darkness.
And behind her, there were mournful cries and the clash of weapons, with the occasional burst of lightning and flames tearing through the night's darkness.
"Damn it, what... what the hell is happening!" The girl grated her teeth, cursing under her breath while desperately trying to escape.
She had gone to meet the God of Plague at her father's indication, but on the way, she had been ambushed.
"When I find you later, I'll kill you all!" Her fierce green eyes displayed anger and obstinacy.
Fear and panic were completely absent from her demeanor. Apart from the expected anger, she was eerily calm.
This Princess Anastasia was neither feeble nor merely decorative.
"Princess Anastasia, you must survive!" From within the shadows, a figure dressed in black rushed out, throwing several throwing knives towards the girl's back.
"Wind, answer my call!" The girl turned around, waving her hand at the incoming throwing knives, and the air seemed to obey a command, instantly shifting.
The throwing knives were deflected at that moment.
However.
Whoosh—the sound of the air breaking was heard as her body was pierced by arrows, her wrist, ankle, and left shoulder were instantaneously penetrated.
The throwing knives were just a distraction.
"Thud!" The girl fell to the ground, her pierced wrist and ankle robbed her of the ability to run.
"What a shame, Princess Anastasia." The figure in black approached the girl, holding a dagger, "I will gouge out your eyes to appreciate your stubbornness and unwillingness to concede."
"You should have shot an arrow through my head." The girl, propping herself up with one hand, looked apathetically at the person in black beside her.
"It seems your master wants me alive."
"No... you're mistaken, this is our personal decision." The figure shook the dagger in hand, their eyes gleaming with amusement.
"Princess Anastasia, you've overlooked the fact that you're a very attractive woman."
"Third-rate character's script, can't the copywriting put in a little more effort?" A dissatisfied retort came, and as the figure in black and the princess looked towards the source of the voice, they saw a man clad in silver armor, carrying an exaggeratedly large sword, stepping forward.
"Playing the hero saving the beauty?" The figure in black sneered, but quickly his smile faded when he saw the fresh blood on the man's oversized sword.
Judging by the freshness of the bloodstains, it had just been smeared.
And the lack of any arrows being shot by the ambushers hiding in the vicinity meant that they were likely eliminated.
The blood on the great sword was from his companions.
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