The Smuggler’s Woods and Foul Swamp are connected. Previously, the young lady had explained to Murphy the reason for this place’s existence, it’s currently an “optional route” from Transia to the Dark Mountains and from there through the pass guarded by Brass Dwarves into the Genoa Peninsula.
Of course, as the name Smuggler’s Woods suggests, it’s not a legitimate route, and respectable people certainly wouldn’t travel through here.
For example, when Crimson Regent Miss Miriam went to study in the Genoa Peninsula, her official route was first crossing Lake Shulps to reach the Cato region, then taking the train from the station connecting to the Genoa Peninsula, which could take her straight through to Shaldor Port.
The biggest advantage of this route is safety.
The biggest disadvantage is that taxes must be paid and Halfling tax officials under the Steam Lords Council conduct inspections along the way, which means many contraband items cannot be taken across the border, thus the Smuggler’s Woods route came into being.
In the hundred years before the Ten-Year War, this was the busiest smuggling trade route between Transia and other regions of the continent. During the era when the Blood Vulture Clan ruled Transia, the tax revenue collected from these smugglers alone was enough for the vampires to live luxuriously.
Because the Smuggler’s Woods was an important industry for the Blood Vulture Clan, the vampires had set up a tax station here.
Unfortunately, the damned Ten-Year War destroyed everything.
The former tax station has fallen into disrepair, with years of neglect allowing moss and vines to cover everything. Many walls have collapsed, and only half of the weathered statue of Salrokdar remains standing in the courtyard.
However, two months after the end of the Ten-Year War, this place had new owners.
The Blood Claw Clan didn’t occupy this place – the Gnolls preferred staying in the woods rather than these constraining human buildings – but Hog had cleaned it up a bit to serve as the clan’s forward outpost.
When the players came to “collect debt,” a group of “innocent” Gnoll barbarian patrollers in the outpost were caught right in the act.
If Lady Dorothy from the Blood Rat Gang hadn’t stepped in to stop them, these Gnolls would probably have been finished off by the angry little players on the spot.
Now these beaten and bruised Gnolls are being held in the abandoned courtyard, while over 200 little players have gathered here in an imposing crowd, fiercely waiting for the Blood Claw Clan’s chieftain to come “ransom” them.
The veteran players could sit patiently, discussing matters with Dump Truck Iaido and others at this moment.
However, the more than 100 new players who had just entered the game and followed along weren’t so “proper” – they were swarming through every corner of the abandoned courtyard like ants crossing a border, even kicking open broken boxes to see if treasures were hidden inside.
Some restless fellows had already run into the woods, shouting as they clumsily tried to surround an unfortunate deer.
They looked extremely excited as if doing something momentous, but for people used to city life, catching a deer that had escaped the Gnolls’ hunting couldn’t be called impossible – it could only be said the probability approached zero.
The Ten-Year War hadn’t affected the Smuggler’s Woods, but a full decade without hunting had made this narrow woodland full of “treasures” in terms of wildlife.
However, these energetic fellows were quite obedient and didn’t venture far, mainly because their Level 1 character status made them afraid of encountering dangers if they left the “safe zone.” Meanwhile, the Blood Rat Gang members occupied their own area separately.
Their vigilant defensive posture showed their difference from the players, like a clear dividing line.
“Razor” Dorothy sat by a collapsed building ruin, wrapped like a dumpling to avoid direct sunlight. With vampire agility she played with the claw blade in her hand, while her gaze constantly lingered on these “new faces” she had never seen before.
She noticed that although this batch of warriors was impulsive and curious like before, there were indeed several who were very “professional.”
For example, the group now patrolling the ruins from high ground while carrying squire crossbows, and the three obviously “military-bearing” fellows who stayed outside the crowd while constantly seeking vantage points.
“So, they’re also mountain folk warriors recruited by Lord Murphy from your ‘Seris’ tribe?” Dorothy asked curiously to apprentice Frostfang Claw, who was hiding in the shadows applying poison to a fierce-looking bone dagger.
Facing her mentor’s question, Fangfang nodded and said briefly: “Yes, fellow tribesmen.”
“How many people do you have there exactly?”
Dorothy blinked and pressed: “I’ve had contact with mountain folk in my travels before, but how large must a mountain tribe be to give up nearly 300 young adults at once? And frankly speaking, you don’t look like mountain folk at all.”
“We weren’t to begin with,”
Fangfang glanced at the updated “background information” on his character interface and said quietly:
“We just lived in the mountains. Our settlement patterns were different from normal mountain folk… Oh, there’s news!”
He pointed to the sky. Dorothy turned to look – a majestic Astral Manticore was gliding down from the forest with beating wings. This terrifying creature landed with agility disproportionate to its size, shook its mane, folded its wings, and accepted a fresh lamb leg from its summoner before starting to gnaw it on the spot.
Feel You Poor jumped down from the saddle and quickly walked over to Dump Truck Iaido and others to report: “I saw large numbers of Gnolls coming this way from that forest clearing. They’re pushing many carts loaded with goods – it seems that ‘Pangolin’ wasn’t lying. They really aren’t thieves or bandits.”
“Whether they are or not depends on checking our goods first!”
Scholar Xiao Zhou from the second batch who transformed into vampires leaned on a vampire-style magic staff, wrapped in a cloak while hiding in the shadows, and said in an eerie tone: “According to the value estimated by One Punch and Crab, if anything’s missing, it proves these Gnolls took kickbacks! They need to be severely punished!”
“First get the brothers wandering in the forest back, to avoid them being taken hostage.”
The mature and steady Dump Truck told the sword-bearing Typal beside him, who nodded and efficiently climbed to the top of a not-yet-collapsed house, then took out a brass horn hanging at his waist and blew “woo-woo-woo.”
This was the pre-arranged signal for the little players wandering in the forest to quickly return.
When the horn sounded, players around the abandoned courtyard immediately returned, while the “scout trio” shared information in low voices as they hurried back.
“I just dug up a tree,”
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The short and stout “Border Town Wanderer” shook the dirt off his hands and said: “Dug down about 1 meter to uproot the small tree. I can only say it’s extremely realistic – even details like the soil wrapped around the roots are done meticulously.”
“I climbed a tree to look at the terrain,”
The tall and thin Master Ziwei played with several rusty Dwarven shield coins in his hand, squinting as he said: “At least from what I could see, it’s very natural without any traces of artificial weaving that would feel inconsistent. It’s exactly like looking at mountains in the real world – I’m professional in this aspect.
I can guarantee there are no traces of artificial modification in it. If you’re willing to listen, I can even analyze the feng shui of this forest for you.”
“Uh…”
The most imposing “Mustard Madman” looked at the rabbit in his hand, shrugged and said:
“I caught a rabbit. We can roast it later and taste it to see just how ‘realistic’ this thing can simulate. If it weren’t for the ‘log out’ option, I’d really feel like I’ve been transported to another world… Do you know how hard it was to catch this rabbit?
This damn thing is even more agile and bigger than rabbits in reality.”
This made the three individuals with “backgrounds” fall silent.
They quickly returned to the abandoned camp to regroup with their other three “companions.” Compared to the three scouts who were indistinguishable from normal players, these three silent and professional brothers showed obvious differences.
Border Town Wanderer, the oldest and most experienced, frowned and reminded the three before him: “I know you’re elites seconded from brother departments to assist with work, but please be more ‘professional’ – I mean, relax a bit, okay? This isn’t your place. Don’t let others notice your differences.”
This advice made the three look at each other.
Their names were also interesting – “Paid Slacking,” “Paid Fish Feeding,” and “Paid Fish Eating” – clearly coordinated “styles” agreed upon before entering the game.
Facing Brother Wanderer’s reminder, Slacking glanced at the noisy little players gathered nearby and said helplessly:
“We knew the mission content before being seconded, but the problem is, this is completely different from what we imagined… Say, do you deal with this kind of thing every day? This doesn’t match our imagination of the ‘agent’ profession at all.”
“Shh shh shh!”
Master Ziwei immediately stepped forward with a silencing gesture and scolded: “Don’t say that here!”
“Looks like we need to have a meeting tonight,”
Mustard Madman swung the rabbit in his hand and said:
“About your future action patterns. But at least now please don’t be so tense. You need to understand, this thing is theoretically a ‘game.’ So please show a relaxed gaming attitude. Don’t you play games usually?”
“We do, otherwise we wouldn’t have been selected,”
Paid Fish Eating looked down at the hunting crossbow in his hand and said with a pained expression: “But who plays games like this? It’s not that we’re nervous, but this damn thing is too realistic. You know you need to be more vigilant when entering a new environment. By the way, if we die here, we won’t have brain death or anything in reality, right?”
“No, this point has been confirmed,”
Border Town Wanderer waved his hand and said: “So play boldly, and don’t have too strong a sense of purpose. We’re currently only in the information gathering stage, so theoretically speaking, opening the map in the game and collecting NPC information also counts as information gathering.
I heard there’s already a veteran soldier guild called ‘Crimson Hammer and Sickle Group’ in the game, and Maxim’s Kadman People’s Army is also recruiting new soldiers. You three are professionally matched – maybe you can try joining them?”
“Alright, we’ll try,”
The three brothers nodded, then quickly climbed up to the ruins of the abandoned outpost, each finding a vantage point to hide.
Their chosen positions all provided a high ground overview of the entire scene, ensuring they could intervene immediately if any disturbance occurred below.
Soon, accompanied by the distinctive howls of the earth wolves bred by the Gnolls as mounts, a team of more than ten barbarians appeared outside the outpost.
These genuine “monsters” immediately stirred up the little players. The Gnolls’ furry bodies and highly bestial appearance with fierce features matched the players’ mental image of “wild monsters.”
Not to mention those who browsed the forums knew that veteran players had just fought fiercely with Gnolls in Transia!
These are enemies!
“Don’t act rashly! No attacking!”
Half Off With Full Coverage shouted loudly for players not to attack proactively, while the Blood Rat Gang NPCs finally made their move.
As Blood Wings beat to let Lady Dorothy and her male and female vampire servants land among the players, Dorothy – wearing a full set of clan guardian leather armor plus a midnight crimson cloak – clearly looked like an important NPC, so the little players all held their breath, waiting for her to give quests.
“Lord Murphy, Regent Miriam and Lady Adele have appointed me as the moderator of this ‘negotiation’,”
Dorothy said in a hoarse voice: “But I need some assistants. Especially veterans who personally participated in attacking Kenport’s camp to act as receivers of the spoils – you also need to participate in the negotiations and strive for benefits for the Crimson Citadel and your group.
I need five people.”
“Wait, Lady Dorothy,”
Dump Truck immediately frowned and asked:
“How should the spoils be distributed? If you call this a ‘negotiation’, does that mean Lord Murphy and Regent Miriam have already prepared to accept the long-term existence of these Gnolls?”
“You’re very astute, warrior. Indeed,”
Dorothy nodded and said:
“Before your arrival, the Blood Rat Gang’s scouts had already made contact with the Blood Claw Clan. Their chieftain Hog is a different kind of Gnoll. Simply put, it hopes to become part of the answer that this land needs.
Rather than part of the problem.
This Gnoll chieftain hopes to pay tribute to the Crimson Citadel to gain long-term residence in the Smuggler’s Woods. Lord Murphy has given the decision-making power for this matter to me and you, after all, it was you who helped them escape death in Kenport’s main camp, so you also have the right to decide their future.
His exact words were ‘he trusts the warriors’ wisdom and decisions – whatever decision you make will be Lord Murphy’s decision and Transia’s answer.'”
“Ding”
As Dorothy finished speaking, quest prompts lit up simultaneously on the little players’ game interfaces:
【Side Story Quest – ‘Tribute is a Sophisticated Form of Vassalage’ has been triggered!
Quest Description: Blood Claw Clan’s Gnoll chieftain Hog hopes to become part of Transia and the Crimson Citadel’s order. For this, it is willing to offer up all the gains that Blood Claw Clan seized in the Battle of Anderma Hills.
However, there is currently no precedent for Gnolls being domesticated by any civilized force on the continent, so Lord Murphy has given you the choice of whether to accept them.
As he said, Lord Murphy absolutely believes in the amazing wisdom possessed by his warriors.
Please make the choice on behalf of this land’s master.
Quest Requirements: Participate in negotiations with the Blood Claw Clan to seize sufficient benefits for the Crimson Citadel!
Or launch a swift and decisive ambush on the arriving Gnoll chieftain Hog to declare the irreconcilable stance between civilized forces and the Gnoll faction!
Quest Rewards: New faction ‘Blood Claw Clan’ reputation unlocked OR special event ‘Clear Smuggler’s Woods’ triggered.
Note!
This quest is a story choice quest. Your decision will directly affect certain subsequent changes in Transia’s main story line. Please make your choice carefully.
Note!
The final choice for this quest will be decided by vote among all quest accepters. Current number of quest accepters: 214. Final voting will be conducted before negotiations begin.】
“Damn, is this the so-called ‘freedom’? Even though it’s just an ordinary story choice, why do I feel such heavy responsibility?”
The last member of the sports department quartet, “Shrimp Catcher,” scratched his head and complained:
“Why can’t we save in this game? I want to try both choices to see the results.”
“Previously the young lady was saved by our choice, and the Crimson Citadel exists because we chose to keep it,”
Niuniu reminded nearby:
“Although this game doesn’t have many ‘story choices’, each one is extremely important. They really do directly determine subsequent progression. As for why it feels so heavily responsible…”
Niuniu crossed his arms and said with a subtle feeling:
“Because it’s too real. Our decision affects not just a CG cutscene, but very real death and loss of life. NPCs in this game only have one life – once dead, they’re finished.
Just like real life, there’s no such thing as saving and restarting.
So, take it seriously.”