Shichui Village was a renowned blacksmithing hamlet, its former glory seemingly frozen by the snowy night. The air hung thick with blood, over a dozen swordsmen’s bodies laid out in a row.
Villagers were forced from their homes, hands bound behind their backs with iron chains, heads bowed. They fled into the frozen wilderness. A few had already returned—trailing a horde of snowmen wearing scarves of every color.
Perched on a raised platform, a priest twirled the holy cross dangling from his neck by its cord like a toy pendant. “Brr, freezing out here! Hey, Liu Feifei—any word from the boss lady?”
Beside him, a female mage sat with legs crossed. “Trying to get yourself killed?” she snapped. “In another world, never spill real names. Call me Lady Valen. Got it? Ask Potter—I’m going AFK to watch tonight’s K-drama update. That oppa’s so handsome… I just want him to sweep me off my feet!” She propped her chin on her blue-gloved hand, turned away, lifted her staff, and speared a steak with its tip.
“The boss lady says,” rumbled a burly knight slicing grilled steak with his sword, shield propped beneath him as a stool, “defeat snowmen, get Level 60 Soul Grass—and she’ll give each of us three million yuan.”
“Three million yuan!” Lady Valen and Priest Kane shot to their feet, eyes wide, nearly lunging forward.
“Mm,” the veteran knight murmured, head down, still cutting beef.
The priest beamed, pumping clenched fists. “Yes! With three million, we buy a house, a car! Feifei—just wait. Who’ll dare look down on us newcomers then?”
Lady Valen’s cheeks flushed. She tilted her head back, covered her face, and giggled dreamily. “Estée Lauder cosmetics… an LV bag… tickets to Korea to see that oppa dance… I want them! I want them! I want them so badly!”
The veteran knight kept slicing. “You earned it. Without you two, how could three of us beat so many locals?”
“Obviously!” The priest swung his legs onto the table. “My healing? Trust me. In middle school, I won ‘Model Healer.’ If not for that brutal Ou Tao from my batch, I’d never have gotten such a lousy contract.”
“What did he do?”
“He played warrior—vicious style. For squishy backliners like Liu Feifei and me? Once he locked us in melee, his swings felt like he wanted to erase me from existence! Ruined my finals. Feifei did fine—but her greed sparked a fight with the guild. Watch… she’s starting again.”
“My LV bag! My designer cosmetics! My oppa!” The mage strode to the village center, wicked grin spreading. “All of you—go lure snowmen back! Fail to gather what we need by tonight? I’ll kill one child every ten minutes.”
She snatched a seven-year-old girl. Her staff rose; a vibrant crimson fireball swirled into churning molten rock, pressed against the child’s temple.
Scorching light flushed the girl’s face. Wind-tousled strands turned to ash on contact, drifting away. One more push—and she’d be a withered corpse.
“Waaah~ Mama! Mama!” Tears streamed as the girl thrashed helplessly.
Hearing her cry, the mother collapsed to her knees with a thud, sobbing. “No… please… don’t hurt her!”
“Who said you could kneel? Go! Miss LV’s Christmas launch because of you? I’ll slaughter your whole family!” The mage hurled a fireball.
Kai and Ou Tao had just slipped through the side gate when Kai—hot-blooded, kind-hearted—darted from the shadows. “Aunt Meilan! You monsters—this is outrageous!”
She shielded the peasant woman; they rolled left. The fireball exploded harmlessly, shockwave hurling them back. Kai slammed hard into a gatepost.
Ou Tao sighed inwardly. *Girl, you just gave away our position. In a pro league match, that step alone would’ve cost the game—you’d take the blame, collect your N+1 severance, and pack your bags.*
But then he paused. This wasn’t a game. Another world. A real life threatened. She was only protecting a neighbor.
Ou Tao stepped forward. “You three up there—fellow countrymen! Threatening a mother with her own child… isn’t that shameful?”
The trio froze. Then, at “fellow countrymen,” their faces turned grave.
