"When are you planning to get up?!"
The apron-clad teenage boy kicked open his sister’s bedroom door, brandishing a spatula. Even though she was a highly sought-after idol, he wouldn’t hesitate to deliver a waking iron fist to her pretty face.
"Ah, you’re still playing!"
As soon as he entered the room, the boy saw that his sister, who should have been sleeping in as usual, was actually sitting in her gaming pod, playing a game. In a way, this was even more terrifying than her sleeping in.
DING— The gaming pod signaled the end of the session. The teenage girl sat up, forcefully stretching her stiff body and showing off her incredibly beautiful curves.
"You jerk, don’t tell me you played games all night."
The boy’s icy glare made the girl shudder. She guiltily averted her eyes and pulled out her phone, which already displayed a pre-written line of text.
[No way, I just woke up early.]
"At what time?"
The girl didn’t answer. The boy found the startup time on the gaming pod himself.
"Two... two in the morning?!"
Veins popped on the boy’s forehead. He pinched his sister’s ear and dragged her out of the gaming pod. Flailing her arms in a struggle, the girl typed on her phone at an unimaginable speed.
[Ouch! I’m your older sister! How dare a mere younger brother barge into his sister’s room!]
"Shut up! If Mom hadn’t told me to take care of you, I wouldn’t bother." The boy impatiently shoved the girl into the bathroom, then returned to the kitchen to continue preparing the breakfast Cuisine. "If your fans knew what you looked like right now, the virtual idol Merushi would be ruined."
[Don’t worry, I guarantee a perfect eight hours of sleep. I’m practically a time management Master.] The girl pushed open the bathroom door, holding up her phone in one hand and resting the other on her Waist.
After freshening up, she seemed to sparkle all over.
[Besides, don’t you want to find Blaze too? As your sister, I’m just helping you out since you can only play for three hours a day.]
"I do want to find him, but isn’t this a critical period for you right now?" The boy put down his spatula and forcefully tapped the wall calendar, pointing at a circled number in red.
"Didn’t your company spend a fortune promoting the world’s first virtual idol concert at the Epidaurus Theater?
"You’re completely using your own face in the game, aren’t you? Won’t the players recognize you?"
[It’s fine, I was very careful to use a head-covering item, and I only come out at night!]
"As... as long as you’re happy." The boy’s mouth twitched. He knew exactly what kind of head-covering item his sister was talking about—a headpiece modeled after the famous painting "The Scream," paired with that Nun’s body... He hoped whoever saw it wouldn’t wet themselves in terror in the real world.
"Say, how did your company get a performance slot at the Epidaurus Theater? Did they bribe the production company of Gedelock?"
[Hey! Who are you looking down on?! I earned it fair and square with my own skills!]
The girl puffed out her cheeks and unhappily stabbed her fork into the fried egg the boy had served her, complaining through her phone.
[But I don’t know about the others. They were eliminated not too long ago, yet were quickly selected again.]
"So they did bribe someone."
[How is that possible? The performance slots for the Epidaurus Theater are entirely decided by specific NPCs, and the principle of Gedelock’s production company is to never interfere with the NPCs’ minds.]
"That’s weird then," the boy muttered, while the girl suddenly devoured her breakfast like a whirlwind, casually wiped her mouth, and ran back to her room.
"What happened?" The boy picked up his phone. After scrolling through just two pages of the forums, his eyes widened. "Ah, the Hermes’ Travel Hat merchant caravan was attacked, accompanied by the Black Beast Knight?! Sis, you can’t log in right now!"
Balkan City, Dionysus Tavern—a highly popular underground chain tavern decorated with grapes and fine wine. Sponsored by Hermes’ Travel Hat, the Dionysus Tavern was booked out entirely tonight to reward the guards from the journey.
Of course, the guards knew this was just hush money. The true goal of the person who booked the tavern was to recruit the man sitting alone at a table, motionless as a statue.
What a resolute man, completely unfazed before the Dionysus Tavern’s Divine Wine, which was said to intoxicate with just one sip. Not to mention, after an overnight trek, he should have been famished, yet he calmly faced a table full of delicious food.
As expected of a Blessed. As expected of the black Knight.
The guards were Silent as they raised their glasses in a toast to Blaze’s back.
But Blaze simply had no way to eat. Looking at the table of delicacies, he felt hunger and a mental attack. The chicken, on the other hand, had submerged its entire body in a wooden tankard, letting out a long, satisfied sigh as if taking a bath.
The Guard Captain took the initiative to sit across from Blaze, wanting to express his gratitude.
"I actually know the real cargo is inside the carriage. I just couldn’t bring myself to tell my brothers that the goods they were risking their lives to escort were nothing more than a meaningless disguise. I, too, was prepared to lay down my life for this pointless facade.
"After all, this is our job, how we make a living."
Blaze was Silent as he raised his cup to the Guard Captain to show his respect. He knew that if he hadn’t shown up, Herbie wouldn’t have abandoned the cargo even knowing a Goblin Tribe would appear, because these guards would fight to the bitter end for their job.
"To that VIP, you are someone worth recruiting, and you will surely receive a lot of help and rewards from her in the future. Small folks like us don’t have much to repay you with..." The Guard Captain hesitated for a moment before lowering his voice. "I overheard your conversation. Are you looking for an Elf?"
"Yes." Blaze nodded, unbothered by the fact that the Guard Captain had eavesdropped on their conversation.
"I actually know an Elf. I can tell you where she is, but can you first tell me what you want with an Elf?"
Clearly, the Guard Captain had heard everything, including the part about buying and selling a Slave.
"To ask about some things regarding the Blessed," Blaze replied vaguely after a moment of hesitation.
"Alright, she’s already an old woman anyway." The Guard Captain leaned closer to Blaze and kept his voice low. "I’m originally from Alcmena Village—what the Foreigners call the Newbie Village."
"Is the Elf you know Catherine?" Blaze turned slightly to face the Guard Captain. He knew of this Elf as well.
She was said to be a historian living in seclusion in Alcmena Village. Even Foreigners had to rely on luck to see her. It was rumored that some Foreigners had camped out until they nearly dropped dead, yet still couldn’t catch a glimpse of her.
"Cath... Ahem, Catherine usually hides in this place. She only comes out when she needs to replenish her Magic Power." The Guard Captain quietly gave Blaze a location.
"Got it. I’ll remember." Blaze repeated the coordinates in his mind a few times to ensure he completely memorized them, but he also felt a bit puzzled. "Why did you tell me this? Foreigners would probably ask all over the place to find Catherine."
"Probably because you don’t feel as unreachable as those Blessed. You feel more like us Ordinary People.
"Right now, I’m just discussing the older woman I looked up to in my childhood with a friend I met by chance."