Pony swung his weapon, his movements seemingly flirting with Victoria's gaze.
Vale messaged Victoria privately: "Play along, lure him to the unsafe area outside the city. I'll deal with him."
Victoria nodded, then pretended to be fragile: "Lord Pony, I still have a girlfriend outside the city. Can you take her too?"
Pony laughed heartily, replying without hesitation: "Of course! The more girls, the more fun!"
Lisa noticed Victoria's lips moving slightly, as if whispering something, and warned, "Captain, be careful. That little slut might be tricking us."
Pony's face instantly hardened.
"You dare teach me? I'm a 50-level high-tier player—how could I fear a zero-level noob? Even if there's a trap, what can you do to me?" He followed Victoria outside the city gates.
If I don't kill this man, Victoria might be taken. It's unacceptable. Though it's a bit of a trap, I'll have to poison him now.
Vale's eyes turned cold, already preparing to unleash Bone-Eating Venom. "Taking down a 50-level noob? It's a bit of a waste of my skills."
Pony stepped outside the safe zone, and Vale immediately barked, "Run! Head for the 10-level suburban area!"
Victoria instantly obeyed, fleeing in the designated direction.
Pony's eyes narrowed with fury as he spotted her escaping. "You little slut," he snarled, chasing after her, "I was going to let you live to serve me properly. Since you chose to run, don't blame me for tearing you apart!"
Victoria's low agility couldn't match Pony's 50-level speed—she was soon cornered.
Pony's massive hand clamped onto her shoulder, yanking her mage robe off to expose her pale skin. His eyes gleamed as he took in her figure.
"Let you enjoy me before you die—your body's worth it," he sneered.
Pony seized Victoria's slender hand, pulling her into his chest. Saliva dripped from his mouth as he leaned in, tongue flicking toward her ear.
"Die!" Vale's eyes narrowed, and a skeletal figure materialized above Pony's head, radiating deathly light.
A black Hellfire engulfed Pony's skull, burning through his flesh.
With a scream, dozens of skeletons gnawed at his body, and his health bar plummeted.
"Who the hell are you? Remove this curse, or I'll have the mayor slaughter your family!" Pony roared, his face green.
Panic flickered in his eyes—he couldn't dispel the curse. "What kind of curse is this? I'm a 50-level high-tier player!"
He frantically used all his skills and items, but the curse clung like a parasite.
"Victoria, we might not return to the city for days. We need to level up fast and strengthen ourselves.
Thor Company's hounds are way ahead in levels and stats—we can't fight them head-on yet," Vale analyzed swiftly. They halted in a shadowy corner of the Giant Abyss Forest.
Victoria nodded obediently. "Okay, I'll follow your plan, brother."
Vale's expression softened as he brushed her forehead and hair. "First, use the 10x EXP scroll. I'll aggro the mobs, and you'll collect the loot from behind."
Victoria blushed. "Brother... is my role just to gather gear?"
Vale shook his head. "Your mage class is too weak now. Once you level up, you'll fight alongside me."
"Based on my experience, the fastest early-game route is killing 1-star wild boars, then 2-star magic rabbits."
"Once we hit level 3, we can take down skeleton soldiers and wolf cubs," Vale analyzed, scanning the area.
His eyes widened—monsters here weren't evenly distributed. Skeleton mages (20+), shadow beasts (30+), and even 50-level flame demons roamed the forest.
As the wild boars charged, their health bars surged upward. When their red "Damage" indicators hit 100%, they collapsed.
[Congratulations! Gained 100 XP (10x EXP)!]
[Congratulations! Gained 100 XP (10x EXP)!]
Two golden light beams erupted skyward—Vale and Victoria leveled up to Level 2.
Vale immediately allocated his 5 free stat points to Agility. His stats shifted:
- Movement speed: 10m/s → 12.5m/s
- Dodge chance: +0.2%
"High-tier stat points... though the proc rate is low early on, it's better than nothing," he muttered.
Victoria glanced at her brother's level-up and rushed over. "Brother, how should I allocate my stats?"
Vale paused, then analyzed slowly. "As a mage, you should max out Magic. But I think my Bone-Eating Curse damage is enough for now—just add a bit of Magic damage. I suggest 1 Magic, 2 Vitality, 1 Defense, and 1 Agility."
In truth, Vale wanted Victoria to invest entirely in Agility or Vitality/Endurance—so she could outrun enemies and shrug off damage. As for grinding, he'd handle it all.
Victoria nodded, obediently allocating her stats.
Vale gave a curt nod, then turned to draw aggro again. This time, he aimed to speed things up by targeting magic rabbits.
"2nd-level magic rabbits are fast. Their defense is low, but a single bite hurts," he muttered, casting his curse on one.
As time passed, Vale lured six magic rabbits. Unlike before, he immediately equipped his cloak upon pulling them—instantly vanishing from the rabbits' sight. Soon, the curse took effect, and the monsters collapsed.
[Congratulations! Gained 100 XP (10x EXP)!]
[Congratulations! Gained 100 XP (10x EXP)!]
At the same moment, Vale and Victoria leveled up to Level 3. A green-patterned sword gleamed on the ground. Victoria snatched it, inspecting it closely.
Item: [Patterned Sword]
Required Level: 2
Stats: Defense +2 | Attack +2 | Vitality +2
Special Effect: None
Description: A plain iron sword—unremarkable and ordinary.
Vale glanced at the "Special Attributes" section, then sighed.
"Well, green-quality weapons really struggle to have special properties. I hope later gear gives me special attribute points and Agility—preferably something like 'Increased Damage Intensity.'"
"But it's better than nothing," he muttered, equipping the sword. Soon, the iron blade rested on his bare torso. "At least it looks less... bare."
As Vale focused, Victoria suddenly gasped. "Look! What's that? A long-sleeve shirt!"
Victoria finished speaking, hurried forward, and scooped up the garment, inspecting it again:
Item: [Magic Robe (Blue)]
Level Requirement: 3
Stats: Magic +5 | Vitality +5 | Defense +5
[Special Attribute]:
Magic Fireball Effect Increased by 50%
"This robe's a solid early-game magic-class item. Victoria, put it on fast," Vale said, tossing the garment to her. She caught it, hesitating. "Bro, are you sure I can't wear it? I don't really need it."
Vale shook his head, smiling. "It's your class's gear. I can't use it—only you can."
Victoria nodded obediently, muttering, "Oh," before slipping on the magic robe.
"How about testing the effect?" Vale said, laughing as he lured two rabbits. One was cursed, the other sprinting toward him. "Victoria, fire your magic fireball!"
Victoria nodded instantly, locking onto a rabbit. A golden fireball erupted from her fingertips. Whoosh! It smashed into the rabbit's head, its damage value skyrocketing by 25%.
"Nice—this thing's solid. Average mages at your level max out at 15% damage. You're 10% higher. This robe's decent," Vale muttered, quickly casting Bone Erosion before shifting the rabbit's aggro from Victoria to himself.
Victoria showed no sign of stopping, unleashing another fireball at the rabbit. This time, the cursed rabbit wasn't killed by the curse—it died instantly from Victoria's blast.
"Wow! So cool!" Victoria squealed, thrilled at slaying a monster herself.
Vale nodded, smirking. "Good, great. From now on, you're my strongest support."
Victoria felt Vale's hand warming her skin, her eyes lighting up. "I'll be your strongest support, brother!"
The two coordinated again, their synergy accelerating their XP gain until they hit level 5.
"Victoria, your fireball now instantly kills rabbits. We're outgrowing this spot—let's hunt wolf cubs," Vale said.
"Got it. I'll follow your lead, brother," Victoria replied, grinning.
Meanwhile, in Victoria City, the city guard squad chasing Victoria had to retreat after encountering a 60-level elite monster. Now, civilians forcibly teleported into the city were being forced to hunt wild pigs for survival supplies.
A player in white muttered, "We have no gear—hunting pigs head-on is no different from suicide!"
Another sighed, "Exactly. And they make us do it alone. That's no different from sending us to our deaths."
A brown-haired girl with a staff added, "We should team up. Sharing experience and speeding up kills makes sense."
The white-clad player paled. "But if we're caught, the city guard's lackeys will kill us."
The two players reached the wilderness, only to find pig carcasses scattered everywhere. The girl frowned. "Strange... Did the city guards do this? Such mass deaths—without a 5+ player party, no one could kill these pigs so fast."
The green-robed player sighed. "Could it be other players?"
The girl shook her head. "Pigs are 1-star monsters, but their defense is high. Solo players without weapons can't kill them quickly."
The girl and green-robed player quickly followed the pig corpses toward Vale's combat area.
As more bodies piled up, she spotted a rabbit's corpse and gasped. "This doesn't make sense! Pig deaths are understandable, but how can someone mass-kill rabbits? Their speed outpaces most 2-star full-agility players!"
They reached the Giant Abyss Forest. The green-robed player, Leo, paled. "Lora, we should turn back. This area has 20+ monsters. We're only 2nd level—we can't survive here!"
Lora brushed her long pink hair. "What, already scared? If you're afraid, go back."
Leo's face twisted. "Fine... We've come this far. Turning back's impossible. Staying with you might keep us alive longer!"