Strategy game? Then I'll have to control you properly.

Upon returning to the village, Attila made a point of speaking with the scout captain, Rick, before going to bed.

Rick spoke up, "Chief, you mean investigating the forest to the east?"

Attila nodded: "It's not about patrolling as frequently as we would the west, but about figuring out what's there."

So at dawn the next day, before the sun had risen, the reconnaissance team split into two groups—half of them patrolled the western area as usual, while the other half headed into the almost unexplored forest.

Watching the scouts ride off into the distance, a still somewhat dazed Rosie yawned and asked, "Chieftain, do you think there might be enemies to the east?"

"There shouldn't be any enemy tribes, but if the black monsters also appear from that direction, we need to figure out what's there," Attila explained why he made this choice.

Rose suddenly remembered something and asked, "Speaking of which... weren't those black monsters already entrenched here before we arrived?"

"While it cannot be confirmed, it is most likely so," Attila readily admitted.

"Then... perhaps that person has been fighting them even earlier?"

When Rochere suddenly mentioned "He" in the subsequent conversation, Attila seemed slightly flustered, because this was indeed a blind spot he had not thought deeply about.

If we are to truly regard that "He" whom no one can accurately define as a deity who protects all people, we should naturally understand his essence.

When will they descend upon this land? What do they seek...? There are still too many unknowns.

Attila fell into deep thought, his expression grave. All that was known at the moment was that He loved gold and silver objects and conveyed His will through various physical gestures.

"From now on, we will walk with that great one. Even if He is not by our side, He will surely be somewhere protecting us; we only need to do our duty."

"Body, body!"

"Look, that sir is watching us!"

As the sun slowly rose, Attila and Rose were lifted into the air, being transported to a game world overrun by monsters.

To the uninformed, being forced to fight endless monsters is like divine punishment, but if one can gain something from it, the situation is quite different.

"Lillie didn't come."

"It must be that person summoned someone else."

The two landed in the familiar castle.

This is the place where Lillie slew the leader monster, the Undead Asylum Demon, and cleaved through the thick clouds to let the sun shine again.

However, Lillie herself did not appear.

Attila instinctively realized that the hunting mode they had fallen into was essentially an experience farm.

Attila intuitively felt that for Lillie, whose combat power no longer needed to grow here, it must have been a journey to a higher realm.

"This is a trial given to us. Just as our tribal ancestors honed themselves through hunting and training, we too will use this trial to hone our skills. And the new warriors who will awaken in the future will also come here."

Attila interprets the experience-farming behavior in Hunting Mode as a trial sent by the gods to those with awakened traits.

This is no ordinary training; it is a trial by God.

Although they differ by only one word, their meanings are worlds apart.

Rose's eyes widened, her heart pounding.

The chosen warrior—this single word was enough to suppress fear and transform it into supreme pride.

"Look, they're here."

"Let's go, what we need to do is fight until we're exhausted."

Just as they left the secret space that served as a safe zone, monsters that spawned inside the castle suddenly pounced on them.

Attila sent Roche to lead the charge, raising the staff he had been holding tightly.

The reason the young girl was sent to the front lines was not because Attila was incapable of close combat, but because Roche had awakened an ability to specialize in melee fighting.

Soon, their magic surged violently, and their skills erupted one after another.

These skills were a miracle for Attila and Roche – techniques that should have taken a long time to master, they could now wield with ease after their recent awakening.

Even the Wraith Soldiers, whom Lillie, a skilled warrior, initially had to deal with with caution, fell instantly to their skills.

"You're quite capable."

This scene was indeed reflected in Lin Miao's eyes.

Lin Miao smiled with satisfaction as she watched the two characters fight autonomously without her having to manually control their characters or issue commands.

◆◆◆

"Is it okay to take it a little easier today?"

Waking up so early even though it's the weekend is a habit I developed after meeting them.

Before she knew it, she had completely adapted to their lifestyle of starting work at sunrise. Of course, the drowsiness was only temporary, and now Lin Miao had even begun to enjoy the morning air.

Even after the trio who would become combatants were sent into the Dark Souls instance, Yu Yu quietly observed them.

The members responsible for resource collection also logged into the game and started working. Maureen, who had been building the city wall since yesterday, was putting in all her effort to continue the city wall project.

They can only advance a few meters each day... but the village itself isn't very big, so even if they only repair a few meters each day, it won't take too long to build the city wall.

"Is it because of a faulty component?"

It is worth noting that some of the scouts who usually patrolled only the west are now active in the forests to the east.

Just like sliding the screen to the left of the monitor, after confirming the points obtained from the eastern reconnaissance mission, Lin Miao slid the screen to the right where the reconnaissance team was located.

"..."

In Lin Miao's view, it wasn't a particularly dense forest, but the reconnaissance team was signaling to each other and slowly surveying the surroundings with tense expressions.

It seems that the appearance of the malfunctioning entity in this forest last night has indeed concerned them.

"Um?"

But just then, something they hadn't noticed appeared in the shrunken image—a black dot-like object near their path.

Lin Miao quickly zoomed in on the image and discovered that it was a black crack that was extremely out of place with the lush green forest.

It was clearly different from the portals connecting the village to the game world; just looking at it sent chills down your spine.

Zerg Nest

"Have they driven all the way to headquarters?!"

With a "let's give it a try" attitude, Lin Miao right-clicked to view the information. The message that popped up was only one line long, but it was enough to make one gasp.

This is a monstrous creature whose appearance alone is terrifying enough; it is the nest of an insectoid malfunction.

Lin Miao suppressed his wildly beating heart, first using the mouse to lift one of the activated scout cavalrymen, dragging him and his horse to the entrance of the lair.

The scout cavalryman, who was being lifted up, screamed and kicked wildly.

When Lin Miao placed the scout cavalry in front of the nest, the scout cavalry immediately drew their swords. Whether out of fear or instinct, they staggered backward from the nest entrance at the tree roots.

"What do we do? Is war about to break out again?"

When he was later returned to the other panicked scouts, the scout cavalryman was pale and incoherent, describing what he had seen to his comrades.

The reconnaissance team immediately turned their horses around and charged toward the village.

In order to buy time, Lin Miao directly dragged the entire team back to the village in an instant.

Another battle is inevitable; there are definitely enemies hiding in that lair.

"We have no choice but to go for it."

After clicking his tongue in amazement, Lin Miao called Lillie, Attila, and Rose back into the game, who had just logged in.

The three men stared blankly at the scout who was retching from teleportation, covering their mouths in bewilderment.

For Lin Miao and the others, the game was ultimately just a tool; their real goal was to stop the enemies who were trying to trample on the village and ravage reality—especially that monstrous erosion.

"really."

Upon hearing the situation, Attila immediately nodded with a stern face and quickly began arming the villagers.

Since the monster's lair is near the village, we should wipe it out before an even more terrifying monster appears.

"—!"

Attila, fully armed and ready for battle, stood solemnly before the soldiers, gripping the staff that had transformed him into a druid. Lin Miao watched him intently.

Immediately afterwards, Attila looked up at the sky and began to chant, perhaps as a speech to dispel the soldiers' fear.

"Are you talking to me?"

But looking at their reactions and Attila's actions, Lin Miao couldn't help but wonder if Attila was trying to convey something to her at that moment.

For example, asking them to look upon them or to bestow blessings upon them.

"It's not that it's impossible."

Lin Miao can indeed directly help them in the game, but she can't do that now, so let's do as much as we can.

"—!?"

Lin Miao directly pulled them and their horses into the sky, thinking that at least it would save time and energy for the journey.

"——"

The moment the horse's hooves left the ground, the startled horse was naturally terrified, and the few people who were not used to it either closed their eyes tightly or trembled all over.

But even someone as experienced as Attila, suspended in mid-air and swaying, stared intently at the ground slowly passing below, his expression solemn, as if he were on a battlefield.

They flew through the void and arrived at the entrance to the lair that the reconnaissance team had discovered.

When Attila saw this sight, he was the first to feel a sense of foreboding, muttering in a trembling voice, "Is this it?"

Since moving here, I have received much mysterious help, but I have also encountered completely unexpected threats, so this reaction is only natural.

"It's not like an ordinary cave; you can't see anything even with the light."

"Do we absolutely have to go in now?"

The others were equally nervous. They tried to probe the crack by sticking torches into it, stabbing it with spears, or throwing stones.

But no one dared to confidently step into that ominous rift, as deep as hell.

"Wake up, Rick. There's only one reason why that person brought you here to inform us of this place, and then brought us all here as well."

Attila shook his head at the trembling scouts, since they had already revealed this place to them.

The meaning is self-evident—there must be an enemy here. Therefore, fighting them is their mission.

"I'll go down first, find out what's inside, and then come back to report."

In that situation, Lillie was the first to step forward. Surprisingly, her expression was unusually calm.

She had faced the bizarre monsters of Dark Souls. Whether it was ghost soldiers, ghouls, abyssal skeletons, or terrifying demons, they all fell to her sword.

Compared to her companions, she was already a veteran of countless battles.

"...There's no other way."

Attila clicked his tongue, and finally accepted her proposal.

Although sending his only daughter to an unknown place made him uneasy, he had to admit that Lillie bore a great responsibility in the tribe.

Finally dismounting, Lillie, fully armed, stood before the spatial rift under the uneasy gazes of the crowd.

"I'm curious too. Although we can go inside, we can't teleport there because it hasn't been explored yet."

On the other end of the monitor, someone else was also watching Lillie with worried eyes.

After obtaining information about the insect hive through the mouse, Lin Miao tried to switch the screen there several times, but all attempts failed.

The reason for the failure is simple—the area has not yet been explored.

Without residents exploring and illuminating the area themselves, even Lin Miao wouldn't be able to switch the view.

"Well……"

Lillie took a step forward, plunging her body into the crevice. The sudden chill made her bite her lip and furrow her brow.

"How could this happen..."

The space shifted in an instant. Just moments ago she was standing in the forest, but now she found herself in a completely unfamiliar place.

"Where is this?"

Feeling an instinctive fear, Lillie gripped the longsword she had drawn and looked around.

Although I had fought in the Dark Souls game, which was shrouded in thick, dark clouds and influenced by the power of the abyss, this place was even more sinister and terrifying.

The only light source is the unidentified luminescent minerals irregularly embedded in the ceiling, floor, and walls.

She hurriedly ignited blue magical flames within her to illuminate her surroundings, thus realizing that this place seemed to be a huge cave.

"These monsters!"

As if they had been waiting for this moment, a sudden, rapidly approaching sound came from behind. Startled, Lillie gritted her teeth and raised her sword, pointing it at them.

"So many..."

But the next second she staggered backward in shock.

The number of malfunctioning creatures crawling towards her far exceeded anything she had ever seen before. Although it was impossible to count them precisely, there were at least ten or more.

As those silkworm-like monsters wriggled and shot out their tentacles, her sword flashed with light the instant she swung it in their path.

Although it's just a simple move called Downward Slash, it becomes a powerful slash when activated as the Knight's main skill in the game.

The malfunctioning components were clearly unable to withstand that blow that exceeded human limits, and they exploded and scattered in an instant.

[Erosion Entity LV2 Appears]

"A black behemoth!"

The faulty component is not the core of the nest.

A colossal monster slowly emerged from the end of the passage—a gigantic spider, similar in size to the giant beetle she had fought before, baring its venomous fangs as it approached her.

"?!"

Lillie burst forth from the spider's back, slashing at the attacking tentacles with her sword, but in that instant, the spider spewed out a thick cloud of poisonous mist that completely enveloped her.

"Uh, cough cough..."

The toxins instantly invaded her entire body, and Lillie, her eyes wide open, staggered to her knees as she suffocated.

Although the magic power honed within her over the years was resisting the toxins, it was not enough to continue the fight.

"If everyone follows suit..."

Even as the spider drew near, she was still glad that she was the only one who had ventured into this place.

Even she, with her strongest resistance, could hardly withstand the deadly poison. If the soldiers who had not yet awakened their magic had come along, they would probably have died on the spot.

"Ugh, ugh..."

Just as the spider's tentacles were about to strike her again, Lillie was suddenly pulled by a powerful force and dragged rapidly towards the entrance, only able to let out a weak scream.