Little Pink Starfish

The Bix clan was actually quite easy to identify. Most of them had black hair and black eyes, although a minority looked more similar to Esmians—blonde, brown, or red-haired, with facial features closer to those of the Kingdom of Esmia. But appearance wasn’t the most reliable way to tell—what truly set them apart was the peculiar aura they carried. They often spoke in a slurred or unclear manner, like now.

Add to that, these few wore the Bix clan’s signature gray shirts and pants, and held standard-issue wooden swords—there was no doubt about it.

If Pei Sen had been here, even he would have had to admire the players’ reckless courage. These weren’t Alpha or Beta testers with just enough level and gear to barely venture into Moon Tree Forest—no, these were freshly joined Gamma testers, most not even level 10 or equipped with anything remotely decent.

After Arzi was overrun, they learned that adventurers and mercenaries had gathered there because of Moon Tree Forest.

Moon Tree Forest sat between Starfall Plains and the Poison Mist Swamp. Compared to the barren and perilous interior of the plains, Moon Tree Forest was favored by struggling adventurers and mercenaries—it wasn’t too dangerous, and it was known for producing moonlight grass, a common ingredient in magic potions. Though not exclusive to this forest, it was still the largest known source.

On Ayla Continent, many magical materials were guarded by beasts and weren’t easy to harvest. Moonlight grass was so desirable because it was guarded by a relatively weak creature: the Radiant Ring Snake. Only slightly stronger than the Savage Jumping Rabbit, these snakes had poor hearing and smell but sharp eyesight. As long as you stayed out of their line of sight, they wouldn’t even notice you.

Players didn’t know any of this at first. But once moonlight grass appeared on the Golden Rose Manor’s trade list, priced better than most Starfall Plains materials, players started showing up in Moon Tree Forest.

Gamma players weren’t equipped for this, but they just couldn’t resist. This one, for example, had snuck into the forest late at night hoping to score some loot. Surely snakes can’t see well in the dark, right?

They didn’t know that Radiant Ring Snakes had better night vision than humans.

Ordinarily, they’d just die and respawn. But by pure bad luck, they ran into the injured lich and Jack—who hadn’t yet escaped Moon Tree Forest.

“Hey! That’s the guy who escaped from Casey City!” one player shouted after a closer look. They had participated in that major event, though only as cannon fodder—they’d charge in, die, and repeat. They barely saw any NPCs clearly.

But thanks to all the screenshots of the world boss circulating on the forum, they recognized him instantly.

Jack glanced at the pale-faced lich and realized he now had a psychological aversion to the Bix clan. “That guy’s weak,” Jack said. “Just one person.”

“Who knows how many more are behind him!” the lich yelped. “We need to run!”

“Let’s just kill him first,” Jack said calmly.

“Don’t waste time! They don’t even care if they die!” The lich grabbed Jack and bolted. Jack chuckled helplessly. The guy was really weak—Jack could kill him even with his meager skills.

Still, Jack was only around level 2 in swordsmanship—if that—and the lich was wounded. Their current state really wasn’t great.

So, running away it was. If they got surrounded by Bix players in this condition, things could turn ugly.

The lich was native to Moon Tree Forest and knew it well, fleeing quickly. The Gamma player tried hard to keep up, but was bitten to death by a Radiant Ring Snake not long after.

---

Inside the dungeon, Pei Sen watched as Eagle took down Vargo solo, nodding in satisfaction. His young master really was growing fast.

Then he saw the forum post.

Huh… the lich and the assassin leader hadn’t made it far?

Maybe they should drop by Moon Tree Forest afterward?

He remembered from forum posts that when they fled, Sadin had landed a serious blow—taking a huge chunk off the lich’s health bar. And the other guy wasn’t much of a fighter, no matter how sharp or charismatic he seemed.

If it were just Pei Sen, he’d definitely go check it out. But with the young master in tow… it was another story.

He zoned out for a moment.

“You okay?” Eagle asked, noticing.

Pei Sen hesitated. “It’s nothing. Let’s keep going.”

“Pei Sen.”

“Hmm?”

“Let’s go check out Moon Tree Forest.”

Pei Sen’s heart skipped a beat. Can he read minds?

“I heard moonlight grass grows there. It’s supposed to be as beautiful as star grass.”

Eagle, despite his usual temper, had a deep fondness for beautiful plants. Golden Rose Manor was full of roses and ornamental trees. But magical plants like star grass and moonlight grass couldn’t be cultivated—they only grew in the wild.

Why? No one really knew. Maybe it was the same reason magical beasts couldn’t be easily tamed.

Essentially, both magical beasts and plants were altered by the magic-rich world of Ayla. These plants weren’t ordinary anymore—they had gained a sort of sentience, making them impossible to grow artificially.

Eagle had always loved star grass. He’d once seen it waving in the wind across Starfall Plains and had adored it ever since. He’d only read about moonlight grass in books—how beautiful it was, how it lost its luster the moment it was picked.

Now that he was stronger, he wanted to see what he couldn’t before.

Pei Sen was quiet for a moment. “It’s dangerous.”

Eagle smiled. “Not scared. You forgot? I can use divine arts. You’re a swordsman and a mage. You even know healing magic. I heard Moon Tree Forest is for low-level adventurers. It shouldn’t be that dangerous, right? We’re just going to look at the grass—not pick it. What could go wrong?”

Once Eagle made up his mind, there was no changing it.

Clearing the dungeon wasn’t hard. Since Eagle wanted to visit Moon Tree Forest, they sped up and finished faster than last time.

Ding!
Player “Full-Power Mage” cleared the dungeon “Slave Traders’ Cave” in 1 hour, 12 minutes, and 34 seconds. New record! Reward: Chest x1

Pei Sen glanced at the system message. A dungeon chest—not much, but better than nothing. Compared to first-clear rewards, record-break rewards were minimal. Later, guilds would chase records mostly for pride, not loot.

He skimmed the system casually, exited the dungeon with Eagle, and left the area unnoticed.

Perks followed at their feet, proud of having finally mustered enough courage to kill a trembling, unmoving attack dog in the dungeon. It strutted with its head held high, completely full of itself.

Honestly, given its level, Perks should’ve been able to solo a boss, never mind a dog. But this cat… definitely wasn’t living up to that.

“Perks, once we’re in Moon Tree Forest, you scout ahead,” Pei Sen instructed.

Radiant Ring Snakes had weak senses of smell and hearing. But shadow cats like Perks could blend into the darkness, making them nearly invisible to the snake’s sharp eyes. And with better night vision and faster reflexes, cats were a natural predator to snakes.

Perks’ ears drooped. Scout ahead? No no no, cat can’t do that!

“Meow…” it whined pitifully. Cat was scared. Cat could not scout.

Pei Sen ignored it. Eagle chuckled. “Perks, we don’t need you to fight. Just warn us if you see a snake. That’s all.”

They weren’t here to gather moonlight grass—just admire it. Avoiding snakes would be easy.

Still, the cat was dejected. What if I get bitten? It’ll hurt!

It tried hard to master shadow stealth, but still flickered in and out. If a snake saw it… terrifying!

But no matter how scared it was, its masters had clearly made up their minds.

---

Moon Tree Forest wasn’t far from Arzi Town. Since Arzi had just been wiped out, and so many adventurers and mercenaries had died, the forest was unusually quiet.

Even though the forest wasn’t that dangerous, relatively speaking, Pei Sen was fully alert the moment they stepped in—his perception on high, face serious, posture tense.

He had always been a skilled fighter. Even after transmigrating into the game world, the realism didn’t hinder him at all. As a player, he had explored many deadly places.

Players didn’t fear danger. Only a few were afraid of dying.

Ironically, since arriving in this world, Pei Sen had been in an incredibly safe and comfortable environment.

Not that he didn’t want adventure—it’s just… his young master was tagging along.

Eagle glanced sideways at Pei Sen, his eyes glowing.

He had never seen Pei Sen like this—not even in that illusion world. His entire body was taut, his expression alert. He looked dangerous… and powerful.

There was something oddly attractive about this kind of tension.

Pei Sen checked the forum, hoping to find the player who spotted the lich and Jack.

If they haven’t gone too far, maybe we can catch them.

If they had already gone deep into the forest, fine. But chances were, given their current state, they wouldn’t risk it.

The forum was still lively. Most players didn’t game at night due to the darkness, but plenty still browsed the forum before bed.

The thread about the red-named NPC had already slipped down the page. Not many players were willing to chase red names in the forest, especially when they didn’t know the way. By the time they got there, the NPCs would likely be long gone.

And that was a world boss, after all!

Pei Sen could look down on them. Other players? Not a chance. To them, that lich was terrifying. Hunting them in a dangerous forest? The odds were too low, and the risk of dying too high.

So instead, the last few pages of the forum were all filled with posts about “Full-Power Mage.”

Pei Sen didn’t care much about breaking a time record—it wasn’t worth the fuss. But to other players, it was a big deal. So far, the best anyone had managed in that dungeon was reaching the first boss, Kui Wolf. No one had even cleared the trash mobs.

“This Full-Power Mage says he’s just a law-abiding citizen. No way! He’s gotta be insane IRL to pull this off!”
“Lol, joke’s on you—we don’t need keyboards to play Bix Magic Cube.”
“One lucky run is luck. Two is skill. And he broke the time record.”
“Too bad he’s super cold. Doesn’t reply to DMs, won’t sell guides.”
“We all want to clear that dungeon, but it’s impossible!”
“I refuse to believe he soloed that.”
“Takes us an hour just to clear trash mobs. No way there’s only one boss.”
“Maybe he’s cheating?”
“Hahaha, go ahead and try hacking a full-immersion game.”
“…”

Pei Sen sighed and cleared his inbox again—he had to do this regularly since his messages kept overflowing.

Truthfully, he wanted to sell guides. Some players even offered real money, which was tempting. But… he couldn’t.

So he simply ignored them.

“Forget it. Even if I made money, what would I do with it now…?”

He’d been stuck in this world too long. The idea of ever logging out was basically gone.

He finally found the thread about Jack and the lich. After checking the screenshots and coordinates, he closed the post.

By then, Eagle was already walking ahead, eyes glowing with excitement, ready to see the moonlight grass he had dreamed of.

Eagle wasn’t like a typical noble. He didn’t care for their rules or traditions, but he did have that romantic, artistic side.

Running off into Moon Tree Forest just to see pretty flowers? No commoner would do that.

“Look there,” Eagle gasped.

Pei Sen had just closed the forum. He looked up and saw a soft white glow—despite the dense tree canopy above, light bathed a nearby clearing like moonlight.

The moonlight grass shimmered like little dreamlike stars. It was stunning, living up to its name.

This kind of beauty vanished the moment it was picked. Eagle had seen moonlight grass before—as a dull ingredient. But this was different. This was alive.

“Meow—!” Perks came sprinting back, trembling in fear. It flicked its ears toward a spot—indicating a Radiant Ring Snake.

A big one.

The snake slithered lazily over the grass, its scales glowing faintly in the moonlight. Its body was covered in chaotic rings that made you dizzy if you stared too long.

“You’re late with the warning,” Pei Sen said dryly. “We already saw it.”

Perks clung to his pants, shivering. It was scared, okay?! Give it a break!

Pei Sen sighed, picked up the cat, and they quietly skirted around the snake without incident.

Moonlight grass was useful, but not rare. There was no point in picking a fight.

Especially since these snakes were pack creatures—disturb one, and a dozen more might show up.

“We’ll check the area while we’re here,” Pei Sen thought. It wasn’t far from the spot where the lich was last seen. He didn’t mention it to Eagle—no point raising hopes unnecessarily.

About ten minutes later, they found an extinguished campfire.

Eagle approached. “Still warm. Someone was just here?”

Pei Sen shook his head. “Not quite. Probably an hour ago.”

They had taken about that long to finish the dungeon and walk here.

“Pei Sen,” Eagle said suddenly, face serious.

“What’s wrong?”

“I feel… something. A strange aura.”

“Strange how?”

“Ever since I learned divine arts, this is the first time I’ve sensed something this… wrong.”

Pei Sen thought for a moment. “A lich?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t have divine arts when I first met him, but it feels… similar.”

Liches were rare in Ayla, especially after the rise of the Church of Light.

Light and dark were natural enemies. Divine magic could severely harm liches. While powerful liches could counter high-ranking clerics, most liches operated alone. The Church, on the other hand, fought in groups. It was no surprise liches couldn’t win.

Eagle didn’t understand why he could use divine magic without believing in the Light God. But he could—and it radiated warmth. In contrast, the lich’s aura was chilling.

Normally, he wouldn’t sense something so far away.

But he had sensed it.

“Should we check it out?” Eagle asked.

Pei Sen hesitated, then nodded. The lich was injured. It shouldn’t be too dangerous. Still, he stayed prepared to flee at a moment’s notice.

They crept toward the source of the aura. The closer they got, the quieter it became—unnaturally so.

“Weird. There’s nothing here?” Pei Sen muttered.

They came to a stop in an empty clearing—no one around.

Eagle stood still. A faint glow appeared on his fingertips.

Divine light spread across the ground, revealing a black magic circle not far away.

“Pei Sen. Over here!”

They stood on the hidden circle. Activating it with magic, they vanished in a blink—reappearing in a dark, dry cave.

Pei Sen scanned the area—no one was here.

Ding!
Player has discovered the Lich’s Legacy Site. You may now unlock the hidden class: Lich (Necromancer). Accept class change? (Yes/No)

Pei Sen: “???”