Little Pink Starfish

This red-haired young man was one of the most outstanding members of the Red Maple Family’s current generation. He was born around the same time the Red Maple Marquis gained control of Frost Maple Territory, so he was named Shuangye (Frostleaf).

However, despite his name, even if Frost Maple Territory didn’t go to Eagle, it would never have gone to him.

That’s how nobility works—everything follows rules. The Red Maple Marquis’ closest blood relative was Shuangye’s cousin. Even though that cousin was a useless fool, if Sveig were to pass on the lordship, there were only two real options: the Marquis’ own nephew or his brother’s.

According to the traditional noble succession rules of the Yali Continent, the first heir should have been Burke Angre, Sveig’s older brother, and second in line would be Eagle—not the Marquis’ nephew. Succession is determined by closeness of blood or relationship to the current holder.

So when the Red Maple Marquis gave the title to the first heir, the Red Maple Lady, and she died, her husband Sveig naturally inherited the title. Unless he gave it up, the title couldn’t pass to other members of the Red Maple Family or the Red Maple Lady’s family.

The Red Maple Lady’s family had mostly died in wars, leaving no viable heirs. That made the Red Maple Family start growing ambitious. From their perspective, the title originally belonged to their own Red Maple Marquis. They wanted it back.

Now that Sveig was lord, succession should pass to his closest blood relatives. That was something the Red Maple Family couldn’t accept.

That was why Eagle decided to come to Frost Maple Territory. It was an almost-too-good-to-be-true opportunity. Even though Frost Maple wasn’t in the Kingdom of Esmia but within the borders of the Principality of Balst, Eagle could rightfully claim inheritance. If anyone from Balst wanted to stop him, they’d need a different excuse.

Shuangye understood this. That’s why the Red Maple Family couldn’t call on anyone else in Balst for help. Even though they were on good terms with a certain lord, that man didn’t show up.

Because even if Eagle came to claim inheritance, he was doing so by the book. Other nobles wouldn’t break those rules either—after all, who wants their children or wives to lose a title after they die?

They were natural defenders of the noble succession system. Even if Eagle, a foreigner, was inheriting their land, they wouldn’t interfere in such matters.

“No matter what, I have to stop you,” Shuangye muttered, standing on the city wall, his red hair flying in the night wind.

It was already late autumn, nearly winter. Frost Maple Territory was colder than Lanno. The cutting wind felt like blades on the skin.

Looking at the shivering people below, Shuangye’s expression gradually turned cold.

The Red Maple Family’s last line of defense wasn’t anything special. They just gathered the commoners from Red Maple City, gave them crude weapons, and told them to defend the city.

This city had been managed by the family for years. Before Eagle arrived, they had already spread rumors throughout town about how terrifying and evil this foreigner who might inherit the title was.

To protect their home, the commoners had no choice but to take up arms and stand on the walls.

Compared to well-trained knights, powerful mercenaries, or mages, these commoners were incredibly weak. And yet, they were also incredibly strong.

It had to be said—the Red Maple Family was truly malicious. If Eagle really slaughtered these people to break through, they would surely spread the news. This was just one of seven cities in Frost Maple. Shuangye figured the Lord of Lanno would hesitate to go on a killing spree.

As expected, the carriage stopped in front of the city wall. Eagle looked out, annoyed.

“So in the end, they still used this tactic.”

Pei Sen understood what he meant immediately.

“Bringing commoners to the front line—too despicable,” he said. “Young master, we absolutely can’t kill them.”

Eagle stayed calm. “I know.”

He had never been a qualified lord, but he wasn’t stupid. He understood the Red Maple Family’s ploy.

But if they thought commoners could stop him, they were dreaming.

Pei Sen glanced at the massing players. “Young master, maybe we do have a way.”

“You mean let your people handle it?” Eagle looked over. “There’s not much difference between them killing and us killing.”

“We can have them avoid killing—or at least try to.”

“Really?”

Pei Sen: “…”

Okay, fair. The players had earned their bloodthirsty reputation. They charged at everything. No finesse. No restraint.

Just then:

Ding!

“Rescue the commoners of Red Maple City. The evil Red Maple Family has forced them to the walls to block your path. Please use any tools to bring them to the open area in front of Red Maple Castle.”

“Each captured commoner: +200 event contribution.”

“Each commoner death: -2000 event contribution.”

Every player heard the delightful chime. Then they read the quest details and froze.

“Did I see that right? Killing one loses two thousand points?”

“Can our score go negative?!”

“Only +200 for catching one, but -2000 for a death? That’s brutal.”

“And we need tools?! Where are we supposed to get rope?!”

“It says we have to deliver them to the castle to get points!”

“This quest is a trap…”

“So you guys giving up? Good, move aside. I’m going to catch some people. That guy up there looks sturdy, probably won’t die easily.”

“Get lost!”

“Wait, bro, where’d you get rope? Can I borrow some?”

“I don’t have any!”

“Then how are you tying people up?!”

“You guys are dumb. They have clothes! Just cut some and use it!”

“Dude, it’s freezing. We’re wearing fur and leather. If you strip them, they’ll freeze to death. Then we lose points!”

Pei Sen saw the exploding forum chat. Soon, players had zeroed in on one issue: how to tie people up.

Brainstorming ensued. They picked the most viable option.

“The game probably wants us to be creative. That’s why it structured the quest this way.”

“Right. Nearby materials can be used.”

“Someone suggested using clothes as rope, but the cold makes that risky. If they die, we lose points.”

“And asking NPCs like those from Golden Rose Manor is pointless. Pei Sen is the faction merchant, but his shop is closed during the quest. Other NPCs are unfriendly too.”

“Too easy if we were given rope. That’s not how the quest is designed.”

“Exactly. The most reasonable solution is to craft rope ourselves.”

“Holy crap, guys! It works! I just made a rope! Even without the skill, I fiddled with some straw and the system said I learned the life skill ‘Rope Making’! Material: dried grass!”

Pei Sen was shocked. He had issued the quest, but hadn’t thought about rope. He hadn’t meant to trap the players. He just hadn’t planned that far.

But winter was coming. There was plenty of dry grass around—easy material.

After discovering the skill, players realized the intended gameplay: gather dry grass, make ropes, capture people.

They had no idea this was Pei Sen’s improvised quest.

Shuangye saw Eagle’s carriage stop and let out a breath of relief. That was the goal, after all. If they had forced their way through, the commoners wouldn’t have stood a chance.

But looking at the mass of fearless swordsmen, his heart sank.

How long could commoners hold them off? Probably not long. Knights, mercenaries, and mages had only bought seconds. Now he could only hope to delay them a little longer.

“If he realizes he won’t inherit the title unless he avoids bloodshed, he might still go on a killing spree.”

Nobles are like that. Shuangye knew—he was one. The Red Maple Family pushed commoners to the battlefield so that if Eagle slaughtered them, he’d lose public support. But if he knew he couldn’t win the title anyway, these knights and guards could wipe out every last commoner.

Do nobles really care what commoners think? Probably not. Shuangye didn’t know what kind of person this Lord of Lanno was.

He grew uneasy. Even if Eagle killed them all, once he inherited the title, would the peasants dare rebel?

Even if the Red Maple Family spread terrible rumors about him, it would only be a nuisance.

Originally, Eagle thought the same. The Red Maple Family was shameless. If he had to kill some commoners, so be it. He wasn’t here for their support.

He had no interest in vague things like public approval.

On the Yali Continent, there were no fairy tales about “the people are the boat, the people can overturn the boat.” Nobles rarely cared what peasants thought. They were barely above slaves.

Due to strict hierarchies, there had been no major peasant uprisings. The mainstream belief here was that noble blood was inherently superior.

Still, since Pei Sen had spoken up, Eagle was willing to give his people some time.

“We must reach Red Maple Castle by dawn,” Eagle said. He didn’t want to waste time.

Pei Sen smiled. “Don’t worry, young master. That’s more than enough.”

Players completed the task much faster than expected. Some quickly made ropes, but they couldn’t let anyone die, which was tricky.

Some commoners fainted from fear the moment they were caught, scaring their captors.

“Hey, don’t die on me!” The system might count that against them!

Transporting the unconscious was hard. One player could only carry one.

Others didn’t faint but were crying, terrified, legs too weak to move.

Pei Sen regretted requiring players to deliver them to the castle. That might have been too much.

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” said a game designer. He pointed to the forest. “Didn’t lots of people learn crafting skills?”

They chopped trees and used the life skill “Gate-Making” to make wooden doors. One player made several and sold them.

Pei Sen watched in awe. Players tied down five commoners per door plank, lashed them tight with rope, and dragged the boards.

Fifteen people tied to three doors—pulled along proudly.

When Eagle looked over, he saw the Bix players dragging door planks with tied-up commoners.

Those without planks carried people, looking miserable.

Some had none and started fighting over captives.

“This is your solution?”

Pei Sen: “…”

He hadn’t expected players to be this creative. There weren’t enough commoners. Only about 20,000. Some players got greedy.

Eagle frowned. “Why are they fighting over captives?”

Ahead, not a single commoner remained. Players whispered about sneaking into Red Maple City to grab more.

Pei Sen sighed. “They just want to contribute to your cause.”

Eagle tried to understand. “Let’s go to Red Maple Castle. Are they bringing all these people?”

“Yes. To show them it was the Red Maple Family that endangered them—you never meant harm.”

Eagle shrugged. “They won’t understand.”

Nobles thought peasants were stupid. Their feelings weren’t worth caring about.

“Besides, we’ll flatten Red Maple City eventually. They’ll fear and hate us anyway.”

Pei Sen nodded. “Still, if only for now, we can defeat the Red Maple Family without killing a single person.”

Eagle smiled at the sight. “Fair enough.”

When the swordsmen charged, Shuangye panicked. Had Eagle already lost patience and decided to slaughter them?

But what followed shocked him.

They didn’t draw swords. They pulled out ropes.

Like herding sheep, they captured commoners and tied them up.

Then came door planks. In seconds, people were bound flat and dragged away.

“What… are they doing? Planning to sell them as slaves?” Shuangye had a bad feeling.

Cries and pleas rang out. No one died, but nearly 20,000 commoners were captured in record time.

The rest tried to flee, but the gates stayed closed.

“How are they so fast? Two thousand people isn’t two thousand sheep! Even prisoners take time!”

But these players moved with terrifying speed. None slacked off.

Shuangye saw two players fight over one commoner. One stabbed the other to death.

They weren’t killing Red Maple citizens.

They were killing each other over them.

Even standing atop the walls, Shuangye shivered.

This was his third time seeing these bizarre swordsmen in action.

First, they overwhelmed knights and mercenaries.

Second, they charged a mage formation, leaving bones behind.

Third, they captured commoners—even killing each other to do it.

Who are these people?

“Damn it! Try to take my points and I’ll cut you!”

“You greedy bastard—three planks? Are you trying to hog everything?! Get him!”

“Have you no shame?! I sold you that plank!”

“Business is business. No feelings.”

“Hey, that girl didn’t get any. Can you spare a couple?”

“Everyone from Bonfrese Guild gather! Put all planks in the middle to stop point thieves!”

“There are no guilds yet, idiot!”

“There will be! If you joined Bonfrese, we’ve got your back!”

“…”

Twenty thousand wasn’t enough.

Pei Sen saw chaos brewing. He whispered to Eagle, “Let’s go—to Red Maple Castle.”

Otherwise, the players might kill each other over points.

Eagle nodded. “Aken, Jekko, Ichabod. You three haven’t done anything yet. It’s your turn.”

“Yes, young master.”

The crowd of commoners was replaced by a crowd of Lanno swordsmen.

Shuangye despaired. The enemy elites were climbing the walls. He couldn’t stop them.

His guards were no match.

“Too many experts,” he whispered.

The third interception attempt had failed. And failed fast.

Late at night, Red Maple City’s gates opened.

Eagle’s carriage entered and headed for Red Maple Castle.

The players ended their infighting and rushed to follow, dragging their door planks.

The streets of Red Maple City saw a bizarre sight: a luxurious carriage in front, guards on horseback flanking it, and behind them—a scattered mass of soldiers dragging door planks.

The planks clattered loudly against the cobblestones.

Looking closely, the planks held the commoners who had been driven outside.

The elderly and weak still hiding in the city peeked through cracks in their doors, trembling in fear.

What did this noble—who might become their new lord—intend to do?