Chapter 482 - 452: The Conspiracy to Oust the Star
At 3:30 in the morning, Eternal Star was woken up by an emergency call; a high-ranking member on duty was reporting the urgent situation of the Kingdom’s NPC summons. In a moment, Old Jiang and Bu Feyian were also woken up.
The three hurriedly logged in and gathered at World Tree Square, where they were led by the guards to the long-unvisited Elf Kingdom Staff Department to meet once again with Mapharion, the Chief of Staff of the Kingdom Military Department.
At this moment, the entire Staff Department was solemn, and the congregation of officers around the sand table on the map table looked even more grim. Eternal Star glanced at the map table, and saw that the terrain on the sand table was none other than the long-unvisited Pool of Radiance, with a model of a miniature town on the island in the pool!
Seeing that miniature town, Eternal Star’s brow suddenly twitched.
"Young warriors, we meet again!" Mapharion’s tone was exceedingly heavy.
The three hurriedly said, "Ready to respond to the Great Elder’s summons at any time!"
Mapharion pointed to the edge of the sand table, "The Demon Race has built a ring of city walls around the entire perimeter of the Pool of Radiance without alerting us and gathered a large army to besiege us. Their refining workshop is pouring a large amount of improved Dark Matter into the Pool of Radiance, polluting it at a rapid pace. The World Tree, which is in dormancy, is completely unable to withstand, and our situation is extremely passive!"
The trio of Star were shocked, looking at each other, then instantly formed a plan!
Eternal Star hastily said, "Great Elder, it takes more than one cold day for the river to freeze three feet deep! How could the Demon Race finish such a big project without any sign?"
Old Jiang also pointed to the city model on the island, "Didn’t our army have a garrison here? How could such a big event occur right under our noses without any sign?"
The Great Elder’s face darkened, his tone angry, "Dereliction of duty! Severe dereliction of duty from the garrison!"
Bu Feiyan immediately said, "Is the garrison the Super Hero from the last battle at the Pool of Radiance?"
Upon Bu Feiyan’s words, Eternal Star and Old Jiang both intently focused on the elder’s expression.
The elder sighed deeply, "Although it’s indeed a bit inappropriate for a human to garrison such a strategic location of the Elf Kingdom, his Merit was simply too dazzling, and he was indeed the only choice for garrison at the time. Furthermore, he had the strong support of Mayor Elorin and President of the Druid Guild. We really could not find a reason not to let him garrison..."
In that instant, the Trio of Star suddenly realized – some things they could only vaguely guess at before were now clear! In the last National War at the Pool of Radiance, the final result was a draw. Both the participating Star and the opposing Dragon Slayer only received their respective faction’s Merit and reputation rewards which were not substantial. But what about the Superhero Da Fei, who was leading in style on the warship? What were his rewards? He definitely didn’t only get Merit and reputation, right? And after the war, he immediately appeared in the Nasir Ancient Tree Space, his quest level was quite high too!
After the National War ended, without triggering any high-level quests, even if the Trio of Star had the money, they could no longer enter the door of the General Staff. Even if they wanted to inquire, they had nowhere to start, so they could only put the matter aside. Now, everyone finally understood that this Da Fei was sneakily awarded a city! What does it mean to be awarded a city in the early game?
The elder continued, "The situation is so urgent, so I summoned the warriors here in the hopes that everyone could unite to overcome this difficulty. You are the kingdom’s finest warriors, I can only place my hope for saving the World Tree on you, I hope you won’t let me down!"
—System Prompt: You have received the quest "Defend the Pool of Radiance", you have been given the apprenticeship Military Rank of apprentice Major by the General Staff.
—Task Hint: The war for the Pool of Radiance is about to start, you have been granted the temporary rank of Major and the authority to conscript level 5 troops from Farolan City. Should you successfully complete the task, you will be officially bestowed the rank of Major.
Eternal Star immediately asked, "Can we go see this city now?"
The elder shook his head, "Not at the moment, the city is still under construction, and the Teleportation Array has not been opened to the public. Also, its opening still requires the City Lord’s permission. However, it doesn’t matter, once the Kingdom’s War Order has been officially issued, the kingdom will automatically open the city’s Teleportation Array, not just to you, but the kingdom’s army will also be forced to mobilize the reserve power of the World Tree for warfare, so please be prepared for the battle! This war came too suddenly; the kingdom also needs time to prepare. However, if this Super Hero can turn the tide, that would be the best!"
The kingdom would automatically open the Teleportation Array? That’s right, the cities that could be built in the old world are ultimately joint ventures with the kingdom, and this so-called City Lord is nothing more than the CEO of a state enterprise, who must step down when they make big mistakes! That is the dissatisfaction with building cities in the old world. But the dissatisfaction is due to the incompetence of the City Lord. How capable could you, Da Fei, a mere individual player, be in building a city? Don’t hog the latrine if you’re not going to defecate!
Eternal Star immediately gave Old Jiang a meaningful glance, and Old Jiang instantly understood.
Old Jiang cleared his throat and said, "Chief of Staff, I think that the Super Hero has shown such a grave dereliction of duty that he no longer deserves to continue as the City Lord, and besides, everyone is uneasy about a human being the City Lord. Why don’t we take this opportunity to remove him?"
That’s right! This was blatantly sowing discord! It came with risks and costs, and speaking out would definitely diminish NPC attitudes towards oneself, so Eternal Star found it inconvenient to say and unfortunately had to let Old Jiang handle it.
Now, the three anxiously watched the Great Elder’s reaction.
The Great Elder’s eyebrows twitched, but he remained composed and said, "I’ve said, we are on the brink of warfare. I hope everyone will unite and share the burden. The appointment or dismissal of the City Lord is not something we soldiers should be considering! Alright, everyone prepare to leave now; I’ll notify you if there’s anything."
The three immediately saluted and said, "Yes, Chief of Staff."
Leaving the Staff Department, Eternal Star couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Old Jiang grumbled, "Guild Leader, damn it’s really tricky, making me cannon fodder, luckily the old man didn’t say anything."
Bu Feiyan chuckled: "That means your slander worked! Look how happy the president is!"
Eternal Star laughed: "I’m laughing at Ma Yinglong! I always wondered what he needed so many stones for with such a big setup, really grand moves. I’ve started to admire him for the first time in my life!"
Old Jiang laughed heartily: "Guys, did the map on the sand table earlier look like a huge cake?"
Eternal Star said with a smile: "Indeed, Ma Yinglong made a big cake. Once we devour this piece of cake—I can’t even imagine how grandiose the city will become!"
Old Jiang chuckled: "Yeah, and when that happens, Da Fei is going to make a fortune!"
Eternal Star sneered: "As if such good fortune could happen. He’s just a nouveau riche; he should just chill wherever it’s cool."
Bu Feiyan smiled: "Maybe Da Fei is pretending he didn’t see it, just waiting for the Dragon Slayer cake to be ready?"
Eternal Star coldly replied: "If he’s really that awesome, then we have even less reason to tolerate him! Anyway, we need to call a secret meeting of strategists right away, and the first order of business is to squeeze out Da Fei!"
Old Jiang nodded: "Actually, squeezing him out is simple. As long as his merits are far behind ours during the war, he will most likely be replaced. Although the elder only called the three of us for now, we can’t rule out the possibility of the war expanding later, in which the entire guild will have to participate. We have more people, so we simply won’t give him a chance to make merits. I suggest our guild’s group immediately start gathering the troops stockpiled around the kingdom towards the capital, and I suspect the NPCs are doing the same."
Eternal Star nodded: "Let’s do it! First, call up all the main force team members. Plus, Da Fei’s backer is Mayor Elorin. If we can use this opportunity to squeeze Da Fei out, it will be even more advantageous to take down Mayor Elorin!"
Old Jiang laughed: "You truly are the president, killing several birds with one stone."
...
At 6 a.m., Ma Yinglong woke up with a laugh from his dream, too excited to sleep, so he logged in again. At this time, the early March dawn had not yet broken.
The first order of business upon logging in was, of course, to inquire about the contamination of the Pool of Radiance, since a day had passed in the game. Naturally, he opened his friends list as well, and chuckled in surprise to see that Star and his gang of Birdmen were all online.
Ma Yinglong amusedly sent Eternal Star a message: "Oh? Brother Long, up so early?"
Tch! Is this a provocation? He really thinks his shabby wall can secure a win over me? Pfft, it’s not certain who will lose or win! Eternal Star also chuckled: "Brother Ma, you’re not up late either. Working out?"
Ma Yinglong said with a laugh: "Yeah, as someone who plays games long-term, I should really take care of my body, so exercising is a must. Shenning recently released a new satellite glass headphone-style device, it’s freaking sci-fi and badass, letting you play games while running, looks just like wearing a Walkman. How about I send you one?"
Eternal Star snorted: "Badass my ass, wearing it makes you look like a fool!"
"F*ck!"
...
At 8 a.m., Da Fei was woken up by Little Li’s doorbell.
"Bro, it’s time for breakfast and then off to work."
Right! Off to "work" indeed! Brother has never slept so soundly while playing games as he has this month. Da Fei sprang up, quickly went through his morning routine, and sat down energetically at the breakfast table.
A bowl of warm porridge, a small plate of fried peanuts, a plate of pickled vegetables, and a fried egg. This was the breakfast combo Brother loved the most!
Da Fei was moved! Working away from home for ten years, he couldn’t remember the last time he had a breakfast made by his sister! Ah, the regret! In the future, which darn lucky guy will have this blessing!
Da Fei asked in surprise: "Where’s Little Fang?"
Little Li retorted: "She’s still sleeping, leave her be, she’s having milk and bread. Bro, hurry up and eat, otherwise the roads will get jammed soon."
"Right, right, a traffic jam would be bad news!" Da Fei gobbled up the bowl of porridge and wiped his mouth, saying: "I’m off, might have to work overnight, make sure you stay safe!"
Little Li retorted: "This neighborhood is very safe. Be careful on the road yourself, Bro."
"Got it!"
Ah, as a bodyguard, Brother feels ashamed. Anyway, once Brother concentrates and finishes his tasks in an all-nighter, I’ll come and take care of you! (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)