Gamers of the Underworld

Awake? That fast?

Sherlock put the keyboard and mouse away and shut off the computer screen. He stood up and followed the gamer to the little Fairy.

The little Fairy was hugging her knees and had curled herself up on a simple bed made of mud and some rhizomes. The bed had been constructed by the gamers.

The nearby tens of gamers had put aside their missions upon seeing the Fairy waking up. They had surrounded the Fairy in curiosity. She would be responsible for cultivating medicinal herbs and making medicines. However, the news of her unwillingness had already been spread by NotWearingPants.

Such an NPC with conflicting objectives would definitely have a hidden special mission! It was the same case with Arthur and NotWearingPants who had received hidden missions.

“Do you want to drink water?”

“Would you like to have some flowers? I just plucked them! There’s still mud on it!”

“Do you have missions for me? I’m very strong!”

“My Reputation is already more than 500. Can I take on more missions?”

“Teach me how to cultivate medicinal herbs or make medicine! I have money!”

The gamers tried all kinds of ways to attract the Fairy’s attention, but she continued hugging her knees in fear. She looked around but kept quiet.

The gamers noticed that their efforts did not have any effect. Instead, the Fairy was more fearful. They started chatting again.

“It’s not right. There’s no effect!”

“The hidden mission can’t be that simple!”

“Perhaps the new missions haven’t been refreshed yet. Do we have to wait for the next update?”

“It’s a possibility!”

“It’s Lord Sherlock! Give way, give way! The dramatic cut scene is starting!”

The gamers saw Sherlock approaching and quickly made way. The previously boisterous gamers became quiet. They looked silently in anticipation of the unfolding drama.

The Fairy saw Sherlock approaching. As his towering figure edged closer, she curled herself into a ball.

“Let me introduce myself. I’m the Eternal Kingdom’s Dungeon Lord Sherlock and your new master. Little Fairy, let me ask you a question. Would you like to go home?”

Sherlock maintained his cordial smile, but the Fairy trembled in silence.

“Seems like you are still wary. I’ll be direct with you. If you want to go home, I’m willing to do business with you. If you help me cultivate medicinal herbs, make medicines and bring me 50,000 Magic Stones in profit, I’ll let you go home. We can make a contract.”

The Fairy suddenly shouted in her shrill voice, “Devil! I will never do business with the Devil! Whoever deals with the Devil will have their souls condemned forever! Even if I starve to death, I will never help you!”

Though she shouted aggressively, she curled herself into a ball again after the refusal.

“Talk to me when you change your mind.”

Sherlock turned to walk away. He had no intention of interacting with the Fairy. The gamers started chatting.

“What’s the situation? The negotiation failed?”

“What’s going to happen? Does it mean we can’t cultivate medicinal herbs?”

“Can’t you see? This mission is meant for us!”

As the gamers were chatting with excitement, Bru said to Sherlock in his mind, “Aren’t you going to coax her a bit more? Or tie her up, give her a good beating and torture her?”

Sherlock walked back as he said, “Your misunderstanding of the Devil is still stagnated at hundreds of years ago. The new generation Devils do not torture for fun. We play with the feelings of the heart.”

“Good, I’ll continue to give out missions to take care of the Fairy,” Bru said.

The gamers surrounded the Fairy in a bid to unlock the hidden mission. Sherlock did not stop them as they would be working hard to earn bronze coins and Reputation later. He was well aware of their habits. They wanted Sherlock to set some goals. They would achieve them one by one and receive rewards and entertainment.

Sherlock left the Fairy and returned to the Dungeon Core Main Hall to browse the Discussion Forum. It had become his hobby. Sherlock was not worried about the Fairy as manipulation of the heart would take some time.

The gamers started to lose their patience with the Fairy. No matter what they said, she would not respond. Some gamers wanted to poke her, but they were stopped by other gamers. It was not easy to have a special mission NPC. If they antagonized her and the mission was aborted, what were they going to do? The gamers didn’t want to bully such an adorable Fairy. Though the gamers treated her like an NPC, the game world was too realistic.

The Fairy curled up her body and ignored her surroundings. She was mentally prepared for torture, but the towering Devil did not torture her. Instead, she was given the choice to go home. She was not interested in doing business with the Devil. Even if she wanted to go home and was tempted by the offer, her family members had warned her never to do business with the Devil.

She suppressed her emotional upheaval and ignored the Devil’s temptation. The Goblins had surrounded her once again and she was prepared to be tortured by them. Goblins were such filthy, evil and despicable creatures!

The Fairy was puzzled because the filthy Goblins did not torture her. Since she had woken up, they had been chatting enthusiastically in front of her. She could not figure out what they were chatting about, especially the parts about hidden missions and NPCs. She also felt their warmth and… friendliness!

The Fairy felt a sense of friendliness that she had not encountered since she had been captured in the Underworld! The Goblins did not treat her as a slave. Instead, they were respectful of her, as though they were pleading her for something. They neither tortured nor scolded her. They treated her with care, and someone had even built her a bed! That was the mud and rhizome bed underneath her. Though it was a bit rundown, to a caged Fairy, the mud and the rhizomes were like treasures. As least she could smell the fragrance of the soil and the rhizome juice.

Ah… such longing… for home…

She lay down on the mud and rhizome bed and slowly drifted into a deep sleep.

In the next two days, the flowerbed was completed, and the excavated space was filled with thick layers of soil. Underground water could be retrieved using buckets in the constructed well. Though the gamers did not need water, they queued up to have a taste of the underground water.

Although the flowerbed was complete, the seeds from [Secret Garden] had not been planted yet so the cultivation could not start. A few days had passed, and the Fairy had no intention of yielding. Sherlock was not worried since she would yield one day unless she did not want to go home.

On the official discussion forum, the Fairy topped the list in the postings. The front pages of the posts were all filled with the words “Little Fairy”. The gamers were putting all their attention on the Fairy as they did various analysis and formulated strategies. Some gamers even read up on Tolkien’s tales and told the stories to the little Fairy!

No matter how the gamers tried, the little Fairy did not respond. The gamers still indulged in their fun as they attempted various ways to attract her attention.

There were some gamers who did not put all their attention on the Fairy. NotWearingPants and Arthur had failed a few times to attract her attention, so they focused on organizing the latest expedition to explore the Spiders’ Lair. They seemed to have a good relationship. Though Arthur seldom talked, he was always with NotWearingPants.

After a few days of carrying bricks and spending Renminbi to purchase bronze coins, thirty gamers were equipped with weapons and armor. They were ready to set out on their expedition.

On the fifth morning of the Beta Testing, the armed gamers completed their swearing ceremony in the Dungeon Core Main Hall. The other gamers looked on solemnly. Then, the contingent of thirty Goblins set out towards the Spiders’ Lair.