Main quest starting now.
Mission: The village elder has assigned the 10 mercenaries to defend the southern section of the village palisade from Baroque Works attacks.
Clear condition: Defend the southern palisade wall for five nights.
Reward: Contribution points based on individual performance.
Failure condition: Let the southern palisade be breached by multiple enemies.
Punishment: High likelihood of the wall falling, resulting in the main mission's failure.
Hint: If the village is destroyed, everyone will fail the mission. Do your best to keep the southern palisade intact!
The village elder explains that Baroque Works prefers sneak attacks and would never openly assault the village during the day. They are too few in number for direct combat; their goal is to take over the village's resources discreetly. This gives Alex and the others some breathing room to complete side quests and gather resources during the day, but the nights are when the real danger begins.
The sun is already setting, casting long shadows over the village, and Alex feels a sense of unease creeping up his spine. The elder barks orders, directing the group toward the southern wall. Alex follows the others, thinking about the upcoming task and the weight of the responsibility they all share. They arrive at their post and are greeted by a small pile of worn weapons and armors.
"I've noticed that you scammers and wannabe mercenaries don't even have proper equipment to fight! I regret hiring you!" the elder spits, glaring at them. "Each of you can take one weapon and one piece of armor. Choose quickly, because you won't be getting any more help from us. If you want better gear, you'll have to earn it through the village shop!"
Alex wastes no time and quickly moves to the front of the group. Right next to him stands Roja, the woman from India, who shoots him a look of disdain, clearly expecting some courtesy.
"What, just because you're a woman, you think I'll let you go first?" Alex thinks bitterly. "I'd rather be a scumbag and live than be a gentleman and die."
He ignores her and begins examining the gear. The items are similar to what he saw in the village shop earlier, but the quality is much worse. All of them are gray-grade, the lowest tier.
Without hesitation, Alex grabs a bow. He already has the [Woodcutter's axe], which can serve as a melee weapon, but what makes him choose the bow is his confidence in using it. Years ago, a well-meaning but nosy relative gave him a coupon for an archery course, thinking Alex needed to spend more time outdoors. After being hounded about it, he'd finally gone, only to find that he had a knack for it. He learned that using a real bow was nothing like the movies. There was no sloppy aiming or cool poses; you have to line up the arrow with your face and carefully aim.
"Maybe that knowledge will actually help in this world," he thinks. "Only one way to find out."
After grabbing a bow and a quiver of arrows, Alex reaches for a second quiver, but the elder quickly admonishes him. "Only one quiver per person!"
"Greedy old bastard," Alex grumbles to himself. "He spends 5 million Berry on hiring us but won't even give me more than one lousy quiver of low-quality arrows!"
He ignores the irritated looks from Roja, who clearly thinks he's a lowlife for grabbing the gear first, but Alex doesn't care. For his armor, he chooses a pair of old leather boots. His feet have been aching after their trek through the forest, and as an archer, mobility is more important to him than heavy armor. Plus, something tells him he'll need to be prepared to run at a moment's notice.
Despite having killed a wolf earlier, Alex's instincts tell him to avoid acting like a hero. He's the type to find loopholes, using others as shields while he swoops in to grab the rewards without taking too many risks. He's not about to start acting "manly" just because the stakes are higher.
[Old Hunting Bow]
Quality: Gray
Durability: 13/20
Damage: 6-11
Note: A well-made but degraded hunting bow that has seen better days.
[Basic Arrow] x 20
Quality: Gray
Durability: 2/2
Damage: 2-3
Note: A poorly made arrow. The arrowhead is bound clumsily with bone. Don't expect to win any archery contests with this.
[Old Leather Boots]
Quality: Gray
Durability: 11/15
Note: Old but trusty leather boots. The system adjusted them to fit your shoe size—you should be grateful!
Satisfied with his choices, Alex climbs up to one of the small wooden towers along the palisade wall. It's a simple structure, but it gives him a good vantage point for his role as an archer. Plus, it allows him to sit down and avoid patrolling all night like a lowly guard.
As the sun dips below the horizon and night settles in, a ghostly atmosphere descends on the village. The air is cold, and the bright moon casts eerie shadows across the landscape. Alex scans the surrounding area outside the village, but nothing seems out of the ordinary. After about an hour of sitting in silence, Alex decides it's time to stop isolating himself. Cooperation will be key to surviving this situation, and it won't hurt to build some alliances beyond just Thato.
Climbing down from the tower, he makes his way toward the other players. Most are lounging around, and some of the women are huddled together for warmth. Alex approaches Roja and the three other women.
"Hi, sorry about before," Alex says, putting on his best polite smile. "I was just excited to pick my weapon."
Roja smiles back—but instead of responding in English, she mutters something in Hindi: "भाड़ में जाओ तुम छोटे हारे हुए."
Alex forces a smile, though he's sure she just insulted him. Why else would she switch to Hindi instead of speaking English or the common language they learned for the mission? He knows she can speak English—most educated people from big Indian cities can. He has no patience for people who refuse to communicate properly.
"Could you at least insult me in English?" he says, trying to keep his tone light. "Or tell me your names?"
After an awkward pause, Alex manages to get the names of the four women. Patricia is from the southern United States, which immediately raises his opinion of her—Alex has a thing for southern accents. Eirini is from Greece, and Perlah from Indonesia.
Roja, unsurprisingly, remains cold, only giving him her name with a dismissive tone.
Despite Roja's rudeness, Alex feels a small sense of accomplishment. Even though he's an introvert and far more comfortable behind a screen, he has a knack for creating shallow connections when he needs to. It's how he has managed to hold down a job despite his lazy, gaming-obsessed lifestyle. He knows how to play the part of a decent guy when it suits him.
Having made the minimal effort to socialize, Alex excuses himself and returns to his tower. He still hasn't seen Robin, the BMW-driving jerk who caused his death, but Alex doesn't care. He feels a surge of pettiness, thinking about how he could expose Robin's absence to the rest of the group and turn them against him. Office gossip tactics—his specialty.
Feeling smug, Alex climbs back into his tower. The night air is cold, and the eerie quiet reminds him of the popular horror game, Five Nights at Freddy's. He figures nothing is going to happen on the first night anyway, just like in the game.
With that thought in mind, Alex allows himself to drift off to sleep, confident that he's given himself an alibi by making small talk with the others. He considers it a clever plan, devious, but effective.
"This guy's a scumbag," he thinks, amused at himself. "But a smart scumbag."
Hours pass, and Alex wakes feeling somewhat refreshed. He grins, pleased with his gamble. Nothing has happened, and he has gotten a few hours of sleep out of it. From his perch, he can see the other players just sitting around, some of the women even cuddling for warmth.
"Motherfuckers. How dare they get all cozy while I'm out here working?"
He counts the group and realizes someone is missing—Robin. The smug grin returns to Alex's face. This is his chance to expose Robin and turn the others against him.
Quietly, he slips out of the tower and begins creeping around the village, looking for his target. As he nears the edge of the village, he hears hushed voices coming from behind a tree outside the palisade.
"Oh shit," Alex thinks, his heart pounding. "Is that Baroque Works?"
He creeps closer, trying to make out what's being said.