Does Playing It Safe Make You a Sneaky Bastard?

Lainer had barely left when a huge hand like an iron clamp seized his shoulder.

"Who the hell dares put an arm around your uncle?!" Lainer whirled around furiously.

With his muscles and ruthless streak, he had always thrown his weight around in Twilight Village. Whoever saw him had to call him Brother Lainer.

Yet the instant he saw the man behind him, all his arrogance vanished without a trace.

Standing before him was a giant built two sizes larger than himself.

The man wore fine chainmail, carried a massive Double-Edged Battle Axe on his back, and had a face lined with deep furrows. A hideous scar ran from his forehead all the way to his chin.

"Kid, you look pretty sturdy. Seems you've got some guts too." A gloomy voice rang out.

"Our Wild Wolf Squad is short on hands. You seem decent enough. How about you come be our scouting vanguard?"

The moment he heard the words Wild Wolf Squad, Lainer's heart skipped a beat, and his legs instantly went weak.

Who in this area hadn't heard of the Wild Wolf Squad?

They were a bunch of true desperadoes who specialized in murder and robbery along the edge of the Undead Mountain Range.

Most infamously, whenever they entered the mountains to hunt monsters, they would seize a few strong men from nearby villages as Cannon Fodder, making them trigger traps and lure monsters.

Of every ten men taken, nine and a half never came back. And those who did often returned with only half of themselves left.

"Ah... b-b-b-big brother!" Lainer instantly put on a smile uglier than crying.

"This little brother failed to recognize greatness and didn't realize I was standing before a hero of the Wild Wolf Squad! Well, I have an eighty-year-old mother above me and... anyway, please show mercy and let me go like a fart!"

"Cut the crap!" The giant was having none of it. He grabbed Lainer by the collar like a chick and forcibly dragged him toward the village exit.

"Since you know who we are, behave yourself. If you do well, maybe I'll even reward you with a few coins. But if you try to run..."

He patted the huge axe on his back and grinned. "This axe hasn't tasted blood in a long time."

Lainer's face went ashen as he was dragged away in despair.

Outside the Corrupted Cave, Su Li, who had just been about to head out and grind levels, stopped in his tracks.

A system quest appeared in his field of vision once more.

[Main Quest triggered: Strong Enemy Approaches]

[Description: The skeleton that has just completed its evolution believes it has begun to amount to something, unaware that it is facing a massive crisis. A malicious force is approaching your territory.]

[Option One: Face Your Fear]

[Description: White horse? I'll make sure he never returns! The best way to eliminate fear is to face fear! Oli Gei! Crush the invading enemy head-on.]

[Reward: Strength +10, Constitution +5, Spirit +5, Experience +100, Difficulty: A]

[Option Two: Playing It Safe]

[Description: I, Bone Overlord, have walked on thin ice all my life. I reached this position solely through the word "steady." Though I have no plans to fight head-on, I can use my wisdom to gather intelligence or cause the enemy a tiny bit of trouble.]

[Reward: Strength +3, Constitution +2, Spirit +2, Experience +50, Difficulty: C]

[Option Three: You Better Run]

[Description: When faced with an unknown crisis, running away is the best solution. As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood.]

[Reward: None, Difficulty: E]

Su Li stared at the panel, the red Soulfire in his eye sockets shrinking slightly.

"They came this quickly? Spider Fairy's information really was correct. This game system really doesn't want us living peaceful lives."

Since the system had labeled them as strong enemies and given the quest an A-rank difficulty, charging in headfirst would be suicide for a newbie skeleton like Su Li, who had only just reached Level 5.

"As a player who values caution, Option One is an instant pass. As for Option Three, it gives no rewards and makes me flee like a stray dog. That's way too humiliating."

If you can't find a book by its title, try searching for the author. It may have simply been renamed!

"So this is basically a freebie." Su Li selected [Option Two] without hesitation.

"Cause the enemy a little trouble? Hehehe..." Su Li let out the signature laugh of the Soul Hall.

"It definitely won't be just a little trouble. I'll show them how dangerous society can be."

After pondering for a moment, he quickly formed a plan.

"If I remember correctly, that NPC girl who threw me at the cave entrance came from that direction. That should be the only route connecting the nearby villages to the outskirts of the Undead Mountain Range."

Although he did not know whether this so-called strong enemy would take that route, following the principle of trying his luck, it was never wrong to lie in wait first.

"Pipi Finger, keep guarding the house! I'll be back soon!"

Su Li's figure flashed, and he vanished into the forest with practiced ease.

On the outskirts of the Undead Mountain Range, about half an hour later.

Two figures walked one behind the other along a narrow path.

Lainer followed behind the Big Guy named Mad Axe with a fawning expression, carrying the man's luggage in his hands and panting from exhaustion.

"Brother Mad Axe, um... could you tell me why we've come to this damned place?"

His eyes darted around as he pulled a small, heavy pouch of coins from his clothes and quietly slipped it into Mad Axe's hand. He did not even dare show a trace of pain at parting with the money.

Mad Axe weighed the pouch in his hand, and his gloomy expression eased slightly.

"Looks like you know how to behave." He tucked the pouch into his clothes and snorted.

"Fine, no harm telling you. Not long ago, the captain of our Wild Wolf Squad happened to acquire a mysterious key, the Golden Dragon Claw."

"It's said to be the key to opening the gate of some ancient ruins beneath this Mass Grave!"

"Ancient ruins?" Lainer's eyes lit up.

"That's right, but..." Mad Axe frowned. "The mechanism on that ruin gate is extremely strange. It has three animal symbols carved on it, and they need to be arranged in a specific order to open it. The captain tried several times without success and nearly triggered the trap."

"So the captain sent me here this time to use a specially made Recording Scroll to copy down the puzzle and bring it back for the city's great mage to solve."

As they spoke, the two passed beneath a massive tree.

Unbeknownst to them, a pale figure hung upside down from the trunk amid the dense branches overhead.

Su Li poked out half his skull, red Soulfire flickering in the shadows.

"Oh? Isn't this that little punk named Lainer?"

Though he could not remember what the girl who saved him looked like, he remembered this villain with the lucky name quite clearly.

"Is that big guy the so-called adventurer?" Listening to their conversation, Su Li's mind immediately began racing.

"Golden Dragon Claw? Mass Grave Ruins?"

"Isn't that the gate I didn't enter just now?"

So that gate, which looked like an Easter egg tribute to Elder Scrolls 5, really did require the Golden Dragon Claw? And the claw was in these people's hands?

What made Su Li want to laugh even more was this: "That puzzle is hard? They need to hire a mage to solve it?"

"Bear, moth, owl. Isn't the answer printed right on the back of the claw? Were these NPCs modeled after Nords?" Su Li fought back the urge to laugh out loud.

This was an enormous information advantage!

"Since they've delivered the key right to my doorstep, I won't stand on ceremony." Watching the two leave, Su Li did not rush to act.

The Big Guy named Mad Axe radiated a powerful aura. He was at least a Level 10 classed adventurer. Fighting head-on could easily go wrong.

"Since you're heading to the Mass Grave, I'll get there first and prepare a surprise for you." Su Li released his grip and landed lightly.

Relying on his familiarity with the terrain and the tireless nature of undead creatures, he decided to take a shortcut and arrive before the two of them.

If you can't find a book by its title, try searching for the author. It may have simply been renamed!

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