Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Rhode put down his book and looked at the girl who was sitting opposite him.
“It didn’t go well?”
“Yes, Leader.”
Canary slightly nodded. It had been five days since the recruitment began, but the results weren’t too good. Rhode’s approach was to use half of the Sphere’s training space to select the mercenaries. This space could be changed according to the holder’s mind and could also form a variety of terrains and enemies for training purposes. It was just like a test-like virtual reality game. It was pretty strange when Rhode thought about it. Playing a virtual reality game in a world that looked like a game was just too weird.
Given the likelihood of future battles, Rhode naturally set the undead as the highest priority opponent, but because of this, the entire selection process was very inefficient. In the first selection, only 60 out of 500 had qualified and the rest had failed. The people who passed didn’t even reach 100. The next few days were the same; now that so many days had passed, Starlight had only recruited a total of 125 people, not even half of the target goal.
This made Shauna and Kavos feel very anxious, and they talked to Rhode privately about Canary and Mini Bubblegum’s requirements being a little too strict. Some of them looked like great mercenaries, but were just never good enough in their eyes. Of course, they weren’t questioning Canary and Mini Bubblegum’s judgment, but the hurdle that they set was too high, and Paphield was just a small place. Kavos and Shauna thought that as long as their ability had reached a certain extent, it was already enough. Because of that, Rhode had also loosened certain limits, but even up to now, the people who were qualified to enter the guild were still less than 300.
But nearly all the mercenaries in the Paphield area who wanted to join Starlight had been sifted through.
“Too many people aren’t good, but too few people is also a problem. Bubble and I have tried every means to have those who have the strength, look loyal to the guild, and will not abandon their companions stay. If they can’t even do that, I think it would be a mess if they joined the guild.”
“That’s true, but the people here can’t resurrect after they die, so you and Bubble need to pay attention to that… Now, these people are enough. I’ll leave their training to you and Bubble. I think you know what’s best for them. I just don’t want my subordinates to be like those idiots from the Country of Light who only know how to run faster than anyone else when the Country of Darkness invades.”
“Yes, Leader.”
Hearing Rhode’s words, Canary smiled. She was also one of the Munn Kingdom’s players. The reason she joined Starlight was to avenge the Munn Kingdom, and that’s why Canary was somewhat similar to him in this aspect.
“Ah, also pay close attention to Marlene. She’s got a lot of potential—she’s an an all-element expertise NPC. It’s really enviable.”
“I’ll take care of her, Leader. But…”
At this moment, Canary suddenly rolled her eyes.
“That Miss Marlene, Miss Lize, and Miss Anne… Have you done them already?”
“Uh…”
When Rhode heard Canary’s inquiry, he looked at the girl in front of him and smiled wryly.
“It depends. You know what I mean, don’t you?”
“I knew you’d say that.”
Hearing Rhode’s reply, she stood up and smiled. Then she intently gazed at Rhode, stroked his face, and lowered her head to kiss him.
Her soft tongue familiarly invaded Rhode’s mouth, and naturally, Rhode also reached out to put his arm around her waist and kissed her back. After a while, the two of them parted… Seeing the transparent liquid that had fallen from their mouths, it could be seen just how passionate and intense they had been. Canary looked up, licked her lips, and then looked at Rhode.
“Same as before… Nothing has changed, Rhode. Well, I’ll come to you whenever I need it, just like before…”
The girl playfully winked her eyes.
“And in here, I am just a projection image, so you can feel free to c*m inside; you don’t have to worry that I might get pregnant~”
“Is this an invitation?”
Rhode looked at the girl in front of him helplessly. At the same time, he reached out his hand to wipe his lips gently. There was a trace of lemon fragrance in her soft touch. Although he knew that she was just a Phantom Guardian, but… the mere thought of Canary’s promise made him feel excited.
“Of course.”
Canary nodded as she answered Rhode’s question. But she seemed to have noticed something, so she turned around and stepped back.
“Well, Leader, I shall excuse myself… By the way, there seems to be something wrong with room door; it can’t be locked… ”
She turned around and left. Seeing Canary’s back, Rhode shrugged his shoulders and sighed.
“Even if it’s only a splitting image, there’s no difference between it and the original her.”
Rhode muttered to himself and shook his head helplessly. After that, he fell into deep thought.
“Still, it’s a very attractive invitation.”
While Rhode was dozing off, a knocking sound came from the door. He quickly got a hold of himself, sat straight, tidied up his clothes, then said.
“Come in.”
Hearing Rhode’s response, Old Walker opened the door and walked in wearily. He must have been busy; now he was so tired that he didn’t even want to move an inch. After he entered Rhode’s room, Old Walker quickly reached out, pulled up a chair, and sat in front of Rhode.
“Whew… It’s finally over, boy. You almost got me killed. ”
“Everything’s fine?”
“Not bad.”
Old Walker took a deep breath.
“Your plan is so weird that even I can’t get it right, but luckily, that guy Shawn helped us a lot and it’s pretty much done now.”
“That’s good.”
Upon hearing the Old Walker’s answer, Rhode nodded.
After returning to Paphield, Rhode had asked Old Walker to set up an intelligence post all over Paphield. After all, from now on, all of Paphield’s mercenary matters would be handled by Starlight. This was unlike the game, where players could learn what was going on just by looking at the system. That’s why it was important for Rhode to have an intelligence post so they could deliver information anywhere in time. It was indeed a big project. Although Paphield was not big, but there were a dozen of villages and towns around it. It was really not easy to arrange some people to those places. Moreover, this job required high loyalty and Rhode was only able to take it slow and start by placing his few trusted subordinates in the larger towns and let Shawn’s mercenaries cover up for the rest. It was a reward that Rhode got for helping him kill an unlucky b*stard and as a group of assassins, they were very good at this.
Of course, loyalty wasn’t something that could be proved with words. Before, in Golden City, those people who had helped Old Walker spread those rumors were rewarded handsomely and immediately became official members of the Starlight guild after they returned from Golden City. However, their mission wasn’t going to battle like the other mercenaries, but to hide in the shadows, gather information, and if necessary, spread gossip.
“But you haven’t forgotten our agreement, right?”
Old Walker rubbed his hands and looked at Rhode, full of expectation. Rhode only slightly nodded as a reply. Of course, he knew what Old Walker was talking about; before he sent Old Walker on this mission, he had promised him something. After he finished the intelligence network, Old Walker would be in charge of all of it. He was, after all, a veteran of Paphield, and he had a wide-range of information and was trustworthy enough to be loyal to Starlight. That’s why Rhode didn’t refuse Old Walker’s request since it was also a good thing for him.
“Of course not, Old Man. That was the deal we made, but… are you sure you don’t want to rethink it?”
Hearing Rhode’s inquiry, Old Walker showed a helpless expression. He turned his head to look out the window and sighed.
“I’m already old, kid. You should know that too. I’m no longer strong and whether it’s Marlene or Anne, they are a lot stronger than I am. The only thing I’m proud of now is my experience… Hehe, but I think my experience is not that much use for you, right? Although frankly speaking, I still like adventure, I also realized that I don’t have the same strength as I did when I was young. It’s impossible to keep up with young people like you… But…”
Old Walker rubbed his nose and went on.
“But at least now I can keep fighting this way, right? Hahaha, back in Golden City, that was my first time knowing that mouth is more powerful than the knife. It’s kind of fun, isn’t it? Kid, just watch me; I’ll troll your future enemies to death with my mouth!”
“I don’t do this to troll people…”
“Hahaha, of course, I know, but it’s just fun to think about…”
Old Walker withdrew the smile on his face and sternly looked at Rhode.
“But, kid, about building the fortress in the Land of Atonement… When are you going to do it? Do you want me to get you some help? After all, there’s no housing in the Land of Atonement. Don’t tell me you want to dig up a hole in the ground like a dwarf.”
“There’s no problem. I’ve got plans.”
Upon hearing Old Walker’s inquiry, Rhode nodded, then leaned back onto his chair and looked out the window.
“But before that, we have to make some preparations.”
