Pei Sen quickened his pace. In just this short time, he had already leveled up to 22 from fighting mobs and the first boss. He dumped all his free skill points into Intelligence to slightly boost his magic attack.
At this stage, by “NPC” standards, he was just a first-rank swordsman. Maybe he’d be stronger in the future, but for now, magic was definitely more effective.
【Pei Sen】Lv22
Strength: 132
Agility: 22
Intelligence: 44
Willpower: 22
Constitution: 22
Free Points: 0
…
Looking at his base stats, his Intelligence still seemed lacking for a level 22 character, but his Strength would make many swordsmen green with envy.
“But precisely because of that high Strength, when that Kui Wolf finally got close to me, I skewered him with one sword strike. Having learned swordsmanship, I really don’t have any major weaknesses anymore.”
After clearing another wave of mobs, the two finally reached the second boss. Pei Sen looked at the man in front of him in surprise, then glanced at Eagle.
He was very familiar with this man. The first person he ever met from Golden Rose Manor in this world was him—
The former general affairs steward, Vargo.
Although being in charge of errands at Golden Rose Manor didn’t mean high status inside, it still garnered a fair amount of respect outside. Plus, as the person responsible for purchases, it was a cushy job. The one who traveled most frequently to Casey City was Vargo.
However, after Vargo’s men attempted to assassinate Eagle, he had been stripped of his position. Pei Sen had even heard he’d been executed. So how was he showing up here?
“I have to say… up to this point, I really can’t feel angry anymore,” Eagle said bitterly. “People at the manor probably just humor me. How many of them really follow my orders?”
Vargo’s appearance here only meant one thing—people in the manor were just pretending to follow orders. They had let Vargo go and lied to Eagle.
So-called secret execution… was actually a secret release.
This former steward, once dapper and refined, now looked completely down and out. His face was haggard, his eyes fierce. He’d clearly not been living well. One of his legs was injured and hadn’t healed yet, making it hard for him to move.
Pei Sen let out a small sigh of relief. He knew that in peak condition, Vargo was a formidable third-rank swordsman. If that were still the case, Pei Sen would have had a very hard time challenging him one-on-one. But in his current state, it made more sense for this dungeon’s difficulty level.
“You people are—” Vargo had just started to speak when Pei Sen cut him off. Without wasting words, he cast a triple Ice Blade that shot straight at him.
Eagle stood to the side with a complicated look in his eyes.
This fake Vargo… Kui Wolf had truly died, but based on what they’d seen before entering the dungeon, the slaves they were supposed to rescue were all dead too. So Vargo was likely still alive.
But where? In Arzi Town, perhaps?
Vargo, under attack, was clearly furious. Even though his injured leg hampered his mobility, his attack power was still strong. A swordsman player facing him here would probably have a tough time, since he could easily one-shot someone at close range. He still had the skills of a third-rank swordsman, even if he wasn’t in peak form.
However, Pei Sen was a mage. Kiting Vargo was easy. Compared to Kui Wolf, this boss was even simpler.
Eagle didn’t do much during the fight. After Vargo’s body turned into a loot chest, he said, “Pei Sen, once we get out of here, let’s go check out Arzi Town. Vargo might be there.”
Pei Sen hesitated. “Young Master, I think it’s best we hurry back to the manor.”
Time was running out—if they didn’t return soon, things could get out of control.
Eagle thought for a moment and said, “Alright, we’ll sneak out again in a few days.”
Pei Sen: “………………”
You’re saying what now? Sneaking out again? Once wasn’t thrilling enough?
Eagle laughed. “If we do it a few more times, Sadin and the others might just get used to it.”
Pei Sen: “……” He really didn’t want to be pounded to death by Sadin.
“This time, we’ll go back to the manor. But next time, I’ll kill Vargo with my own hands.”
That traitor—he wouldn’t be spared.
“Young Master, the outside isn’t safe,” Pei Sen said tactfully.
Eagle smiled. “You saw Vargo here, didn’t you? Do you think the manor is safe?”
He had no way of knowing what the others in the manor truly thought. He couldn’t dig into everyone’s heart.
Pei Sen was right—only by becoming stronger could he change anything.
“Even if there’s no place like this next time, it doesn’t matter,” Eagle said softly. “As long as I’m locked up in the manor, even if I learn magic, I’ll never get good at it. Coming out here… is the only way to grow. Pei Sen, you’ll help me, won’t you?”
Pei Sen suddenly felt like he’d boarded the wrong ship—and it belonged to this rebellious young master.
He sighed and said helplessly, “If we can’t clear this dungeon, there’s no point in talking about what comes next.”
Eagle, aware of his worries, replied, “Don’t worry… I won’t die.”
While Pei Sen and Eagle were still inside the dungeon, back at Golden Rose Manor, two players—BraisedSpicySnackand EggWhiteMixedNoodles—were playing the game with almost zero regard for personal gain.
They were the type who, if the reward was small, were more focused on completing the quest regardless.
Despite being drawn into this by chance, these two lucky players had shared the quest with others, resulting in nearly a thousand players receiving this rare encounter mission.
Thankfully, it hadn’t yet reached two thousand… though even one thousand made a big difference.
Normally, players could accept quests at the manor, but their activity was limited to the front hall. The only time players had truly entered the inner manor was during Eagle’s birthday.
Players weren’t foolish—they knew the manor was heavily guarded. No one dared to charge in recklessly. They were still part of the manor’s faction, after all.
“And based on the quest description, this seems more like a puzzle quest,” said the Designer, scanning the very minimal quest prompt. “In most games, these rare encounter quests don’t require much fighting.”
Or rather, combat wasn’t the main focus.
Even if this was the first time they’d encountered such a quest type in this game, most players were experienced gamers. No one barged in recklessly.
Those guards? Definitely not for decoration.
Soon, Neil and a group of male servants were swarmed by a sea of players in the front hall, almost to the point of suffocation.
“What happened last night at the manor?”
“Did something happen?”
“Was there some kind of incident?”
“…”
They asked the same question repeatedly, sounding like thousands of buzzing flies to Neil.
He was on the verge of collapse.
At this moment, Atwell appeared. He had been interested in the Bix people for a while, and upon hearing about the crowd in the front hall, came to investigate.
Players, after pestering Neil to no avail, immediately turned to Atwell.
“New NPC!”
“He showed up just as we triggered the rare encounter quest!”
“He must be the key!”
With Atwell’s bold nature, he wasn’t afraid of the Bix people. As a priest trained by the Church of Light, he’d dealt with stranger races before.
He was just about to speak when he was swarmed by players.
“What happened last night at the manor?”
Atwell frowned. “Last night?”
Unlike Neil and the others, Atwell’s reaction was different—players got excited. He must be the key NPC!
“Something happened last night at the manor, didn’t it? What was it?”
So many players confidently said the same thing that even Atwell started second-guessing himself. Could everyone be wrong?
“Who told you something happened last night?” Atwell asked calmly amid the chaos.
The players thought the NPC was testing them—it fit the puzzle-quest vibe.
“Two mysterious people in black cloaks appeared in the fog and told us the Golden Rose Manor was in danger,” said BraisedSpicySnack, stepping forward.
Atwell grew more puzzled.
Before he could say more, a guard named Aymond emerged from the manor. Atwell noticed him and asked, “You’re not due for shift change yet—why are you here?”
Aymond replied calmly, “I came to find Robbie. I need to talk to him.”
Atwell narrowed his eyes. Robbie was on his suspect list in the attempted assassination of Eagle, though only a few knew that so far.
This sudden visit outside his shift? Very suspicious.
With lightning reflexes, Atwell suddenly shouted, “Something happened last night, didn’t it—was it the Young Master?!”
Aymond’s eyes twitched ever so slightly—Atwell noticed.
Without another word, he bolted back inside.
The players were thrilled—this had to be part of the storyline!
They soon realized something huge had happened—and it might even involve Count Eagle…
Outside Eagle’s bedroom, Carla was anxiously pacing. She glanced at Linny and said, “We shouldn’t have let Aymond go look for Robbie so recklessly. It might expose him—and it could drag us down too.”
“No, this information is too important. We have to get it out no matter what,” Linny remained composed. “It’s too hard to get to Young Master Eagle inside the manor. He’s outside right now… If something happens, no one can be blamed.”
Carla still couldn’t wrap her head around it. “How could Young Master Eagle elope with a commoner? No matter how good-looking that commoner is, he’s still just a commoner. And a man, no less.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Linny sneered. “Just some noble who’s only worth anything because of his looks. He doesn’t hold a candle to Lord Frey.”
Frey was technically the cousin of Leiser and Princess Carolina, though he was less than ten years older than Eagle. After his father was killed by Leiser, he had to act low-key. But from his performance in managing his territory, he was clearly quite capable.
While Linny sneered at Eagle, she was also nervously awaiting contact from the outside mage. The manor was under strict surveillance, so to avoid exposure, they rarely initiated contact. However, a high-ranking mage outside could relay commands through special means. Now they were just waiting for Aymond to get the message out.
“We can’t keep this hidden for long. We just have to hope Lord Sadin doesn’t find out too soon—”
“Doesn’t find out what?”
A male voice cut in. Linny jumped in fright and turned to see Atwell standing nearby, face grim. Her heart sank instantly.
She realized the worst had happened—Aymond had been exposed.
How could it be so fast? Aymond wasn’t reckless. He had always been steady and reliable.
What she didn’t know was that Aymond was currently on the verge of mental collapse—trapped in a mob of Bix players like a drowning man gasping for air.
While Pei Sen and Eagle hadn’t yet reached the third boss, Sadin Brisk, face like thunder, had already reached the front hall alongside Atwell.
When Aymond saw them, he knew he had been exposed. And now that the head steward was here, even escape was out of the question.
Truth be told, if not for being surrounded by so many Bix players, Aymond really might have tried to run the moment he was exposed.
“One who elopes with another man is not worthy to be heir to the Kingdom of Esmia!” Aymond shouted, startling the surrounding players. “He is a disgrace to Esmia’s bloodline! Someone has to get the word out—he must never return to the royal court!”
Moments later, Aymond collapsed and died. Clearly, he had taken a fast-acting poison.
Sadin calmly said, “A knight loyal to his master, unfortunately, his master wasn’t Young Master Eagle.”
“Most likely another of Viscount Frey’s pawns.”
The surrounding players were all completely dumbfounded.
“Wait, what just happened?” one female player whispered.
“Did he just say our dear Count eloped with a man?”
Players: “???” Is this for real??
“Pei—Pei Sen?” a player exclaimed in shock.
“Isn’t he that handsome, gentle merchant from our faction?”
“I heard he’s Count Eagle’s personal steward.”
“Damn, personal steward? That close?”
“Eloped???”
At that moment, the manor’s guards began mobilizing in full force. No one paid the players any mind. After all, to people like Sadin, the Bix players didn’t matter at all. In a crisis like this, who had time to care about them?
The Designer looked at the quest log. “Seems like it’s not elopement after all.”
“What?” asked the artist TuTuDraws, eyes sparkling. “Of course it is! Didn’t that NPC literally die to prove it?”
“But the quest hasn’t completed,” said the Architect. “If Count Eagle and Pei Sen really eloped, and that’s what happened last night, then the quest should be marked as complete.”
“Yeah,” the Designer chuckled. “Since the quest isn’t over, it must mean there’s more to the story. The manor NPCs just think they eloped.”
“And who were those two cloaked figures?”
Still, whether it was true or not, many female players were already squealing.
“OH MY GOD, THE COUNT ELOPED WITH PEI SEN?”
“I don’t care, I believe it’s real!”
“Totally real—didn’t that NPC just DIE for it?”
“AAHHH they really eloped!”
“……”
Most players, though, were like the Designer—realizing that if the quest hadn’t completed, the truth was more complicated.
Of course, no one could guess that the real reason was—Pei Sen had taken Eagle into a dungeon…
They didn’t know Pei Sen was also a player. In their eyes, Pei Sen and Eagle were just NPCs. What kind of NPC runs off to dungeon crawl?
So, they were doomed to never get the real answer to this quest.
“Looks like the NPCs in the manor might not know the full story,” said the Designer.
“So we find someone else?” the players chorused.
“Yeah. If we find Count Eagle and Pei Sen before the manor’s guards do, the quest might complete.”
“Alright then—let’s start searching!”
The players left the manor in droves, leaving behind a stunned Neil and the other servants.
Did the Count really elope with Pei Sen?
The servants all exchanged looks, completely lost.
Pei Sen had never checked the forums about the quest. But because some players had been livestreaming the whole thing, the footage of Aymond shouting and then committing suicide had spread.
When Pei Sen saw that part, his heart sank completely.
Great. Now it’s a full-on scandal. There’s no coming back from this.
Compared to that, the fact that both manor guards and players were scouring the region to find them… didn’t even seem like a big deal anymore.
“What’s wrong?” Eagle looked at him with confusion.
Pei Sen sighed as he gazed into the young master’s clear eyes.
“Young Master, if we go back… some people might say strange things. Don’t take it to heart.”
He already knew there were rumors spreading. They just hadn’t reached Eagle yet. No one would dare gossip in front of him.
Eagle blinked in confusion but obediently replied, “Oh.”
Strange things… like what?
Like guessing that he and Pei Sen had eloped?
Eagle kept a straight face but curled his lips in amusement.
He thought it was pretty funny, honestly.
Little Pink Starfish 
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