Violet Melody's quest required us to go to a cave east of the village to kill a Boar King. When I asked about the difficulty, Violet Melody smiled slightly and said, "The current difficulty level is 150. Think you're up for it?"
I couldn't help but grin, "Of course! Why wouldn't I be?"
For some reason, Violet Melody's cheeks suddenly turned red. She said, "Then let's hurry over there. This quest can be accepted by multiple people. If we don't get there first, we'll have to wait 10 hours for the boss to respawn!"
I nodded, and we ran side by side towards the east.
Probably feeling that just running was too boring, Violet Melody smiled and asked, "Scholar, what do you do in New York?"
I thought for a moment and said, "I work in a tech plaza, doing planning. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I do... What about you?"
Violet Melody frowned slightly, then smiled and said, "I do something similar. I work at an advertising company. Recently, I haven't been going to work much. I level up at night and sleep during the day."
I felt envious and said, "That sounds like a great life. I level up at night, but I still have to clock in for work during the day. I can only sneak in a nap while at work..."
Violet Melody couldn't help but chuckle, "If you're not happy with your job, you could come work at my company! Oh, never mind. A high-level player like you could just exchange game currency and live comfortably. You don't need to come to my small company."
I laughed, "I'm no expert, just a bit lucky. I'm far behind you guys in the Swordfire guild. "
Violet Melody burst out laughing, "That was Dragon Soul's idea. It has nothing to do with me. But Dragon Soul is actually a really good person, very loyal. He'd risk his life for his friends. Titan can be reckless, but fortunately, Dragon Soul can keep him in check."
"What about Ghost Flame? What's he like?" I suddenly remembered the dark mage.
Violet Melody smiled slightly and explained, "I've never met Ghost Flame in person, but in the game, he's always been very quiet and seems cold. However, I know that Ghost Flame is typically cold on the outside but warm on the inside. Last time, when Ares offended the leader of another guild in Moon Eternal, Ghost Flame went to that guild alone without a word and killed their leader in front of a hundred people."
I couldn't help but laugh, "Not bad, not bad. It seems Swordfire is really a great team!"
Violet Melody looked at me meaningfully and asked, "Would you like to join us?"
I thought that at this moment, any normal man would find it hard to resist such temptation. Violet Melody's gaze was like water, seemingly magical, able to draw one deeper and deeper!
However, I had a reason to refuse!
After half a minute, I smiled faintly and said, "If that person abandons me, then I'll join Swordfire. But before that, I must stay with her and do anything for her."
Violet Melody was slightly surprised and asked, "Who is this person that makes you feel this way? Your girlfriend?"
I couldn't help but laugh, "Of course not. What girl would be interested in a poor guy like me? I'm talking about someone else. I owe her a lot. Without her, I wouldn't even be able to play this game!"
"I see!" Violet Melody smiled gently, "I won't pressure you. In any case, Swordfire's doors are always open for you!"
I nodded, "Thank you!"
At this moment, we had arrived at the entrance of a small cave deep in the forest. There were hardly any other players around.
Violet Melody, being a cleric, naturally couldn't risk danger, so I instinctively walked in front, forming a party and inviting Violet Melody to join.
The cave was dark inside. My combat boots sank into the soft, damp soil beneath, which felt uncomfortable.
Violet Melody held a green staff with a black iron handle, following behind me, cautiously observing our surroundings.
"Flap flap..."
A soft sound echoed as several bats were startled from the cave, a black mass flying towards us!
"Ah!"
Violet Melody let out a surprised cry. I quickly pulled her behind me while swinging my Rippling Dagger to drive away the bats.
Fortunately, these bats had no attack power and were merely scenery mobs. They soon dispersed.
Looking into the cave, it wasn't very deep. I could faintly see a red shadow inside. Violet was slightly startled and said, "Jake, look, is that the Boar King?"
Violet Melody was only level 22, while I was level 25, so I could see further than her. In the dim light, I could indeed see a large boar sleeping soundly!
I nodded, "Yes, it's the Boar King!"
[Boar King] (Black Iron tier boss)
Level: 20
Attack: 165-250
Defense: 55
HP: 40,000
Attack Type: Bloodthirsty, 10% chance to deal a fatal blow to the target
...
Being five levels higher than the boss, I could see all of its attributes clearly. I told Violet Melody about the boss's attack and defense stats. Violet Melody's eyes widened in surprise, "What should we do? Its attack power is 250, that's too high! We don't have a tank to absorb that damage! If I had known, I would have asked Titan to stay and finish this quest with me instead of going to the sauna..."
I couldn't help but laugh, "Don't worry, I'll tank this boss. You just focus on healing me!"
Violet Melody looked up at me and smiled, "Are you sure you can handle it?"
"Of course I can!" I confidently patted my chest.
Then, I asked Violet Melody to retreat outside the cave while I lured the Boar King out. It would be better to fight in the open area outside, as both Violet Melody and I were ranged attackers and needed space to maneuver.
As soon as I saw Violet Melody's figure retreat outside, I raised my Golden Bow and fired an Ice Arrow!
"Thwack!"
Blue light burst forth, instantly dealing 245 damage to the Boar King! No joke, with all my points invested in attack, I now had 230 attack power. The Boar King's mere 55 defense was no match!
"Huff huff..."
The Boar King woke up startled, grunted twice, and immediately charged out!
I didn't waste any time and turned to run, reaching the cave entrance where I saw Violet's face filled with worry. As soon as she saw me come out, she gave a slight smile and skillfully retreated a few steps, putting some distance between us. It would be unwise for two ranged attackers to stand together when fighting monsters.
The Boar King charged out fiercely, its sharp tusks whistling through the air as it lunged at me!
"Thud!"
With a dull sound, the Boar King's attack landed directly on my shoulder. I felt a sharp pain as a damage number of "124" appeared above my head!
Not bad, it didn't break through my defense too much!
I drew back my Golden Bow and fired a Fire Arrow directly at the Boar King's face. The powerful fire-based attack proved extraordinary, instantly dealing 467 damage to the Boar King!
Violet Melody was surprised again and couldn't help asking, "Scholar, how high is your attack power? Even Ghost Flame can only deal about 200 damage to monsters with 55 defense..."
I chuckled and mysteriously said, "Let's just say my attack power is stronger than Ghost Flame's!"
Violet Melody smiled and didn't ask further. She raised her hand and cast Weaken on the Boar King's forehead!
"Ding!"
Battle prompt: The Boar King is affected by Weaken, attack and defense reduced by 5%!
...
I was slightly surprised and couldn't help but say, "Wow, Weaken is really effective!"
Violet Melody smiled and said, "This is still quite weak. It's only a basic skill for now. After class advancement, you can train skills to advanced or even master level. That's when the effects become truly significant!"
As we were talking, the Boar King had given up on me and charged towards Violet Melody!
Violet Melody remained calm, casting a healing spell on me from afar to restore my HP. Of course, I wouldn't let a cleric tank the boss's attacks. The string of my Golden Bow vibrated as I released another Fire Arrow!
"Thud thud thud"
The Boar King ran back and forth in the open space between Violet Melody and me, its AI unable to decide which one to attack. As a result, it couldn't hit either of us.
A few minutes later, with a loud "Bang!", my Fire Arrow scored a critical hit, dealing 884 damage to the Boar King!
"Roar..."
The Boar King let out a painful cry and fell to the ground, dead. It dropped some gold coins and a piece of equipment!
Violet Melody quickly went forward and collected the Boar King's head into her inventory. She frowned slightly; the game's graphics were very realistic, and the Boar King's head looked like a bloody, severed pig's head.
After picking up the two pieces of equipment and gold coins from the ground, Violet Melody walked straight up to me, opened the trade window, and placed a pair of mage boots, a plate armor helmet, and 12 gold coins. She smiled and said, "That's all it dropped. If you don't mind, take these as payment for the quest!"
I looked at the two pieces of equipment, which seemed to be bronze-tier, and to be honest, I didn't need the gold coins.
So I directly canceled the trade and said, "Keep the mage boots for yourself. Why would I take something you can use? I can't equip the plate armor helmet either, save it for Titan or Dragon Soul. As for the gold coins, could you trade again? I'll just take the gold coins..."
Violet Melody was stunned for a moment, then smiled gently, "You..."
She initiated the trade again and gave me the 12 gold coins. I knew that if I didn't take anything, she would feel like she owed me a lot. Twelve gold coins weren't much, definitely not worth as much as the two bronze equipment pieces, but it would make Violet Melody feel at ease.
Receiving the 12 gold coins again, I now had 88 gold coins in my inventory!
Violet Melody was satisfied as she put the equipment in her inventory. She smiled and said, "Well, I'm going back to turn in the quest. Scholar, you should get some sleep soon. Don't tire yourself out too much."
Violet Melody's voice was very soft and sweet, making me feel touched. It had been a long time since I'd heard such caring words.
But my feeling of being moved didn't last long before it was shattered. I heard a voice from the forest, "Hey! Boss, someone's already killed the Boar King! Damn it!"
Another voice responded, "Fuck! Who stole our quest monster? Let's find them and take them out!"