Chapter 35 - Reader: A dialogue option triggered a bloodbath.
This is bad… Eric was flustered and wanted to lighten the atmosphere. He looked at Du Ze and Xiu and said sincerely: “I’m terribly sorry, my teammate is impulsive but please don’t mind him, he’s actually harmless.”
Eric was very apologetic. The blond youth tried to express his goodwill: “I admire1 you.
Du Ze immediately felt a shudder. Xiu’s hands around his neck tightened so much that he was afraid his head would break off soon.
“I regret it.” Xiu’s voice was not loud but everyone could hear him clearly. “You are going to die now, eh?”
The last sentence was full of evil meaning and the little gnome tilted his head sidewise, shooting a look at the brown-haired person, and ordered: “Kill them.”
… What’s wrong with you, Moe Lord?
Some cute reader desperately tried to recall the previous dialogue: There is no problem, the lines should be good? Why was the protagonist’s anger spot poked so that he exploded – are the elf and the gnome’s G-spots are different? In the original “Mixed Blood” favorability rating mechanic, the different forms of the protagonist need different dialogue options!
After hearing Xiu’s order, Old John began to walk towards the mercenary team. He was still smiling and gently said: “in fact, I don’t like death very much, but my little master is a little headstrong now …”
Old John seemed to speak reasonably so Eric continued to try to stop the conflict: “We are not trying to offend you, there must be some misunderstanding!”
Old John’s voice is full of tenderness: “The little master said to kill you – I know it sounds too much, but I will indulge his caprice. He is the only master we have now.”
Facing the loyal and devoted Old John, Eric was speechless, Enoch took out his dagger, Bart drew a big sword, and Honey jumped down from Bart’s shoulder.
The Phoenix fanned its wings out and then left Old John’s shoulder. Old John took out his katar2 and, while looking at the mercenary team, bent down from the waist as though he was bowing as an apology before he attacked.
“Please forgive me.”
When he finished speaking, Old John rushed towards the mercenary team. Because Old John’s speed was really too fast, it looked to Du Ze like one moment, the two sides still had a distance of dozens of meters, and the next moment they were already fighting.
“Zheng!”
Sparks flew as Bart stopped Old John’s’ attack with his big sword. A red battle aura added to his strength, but even so the ground under Bart’s feet cracked. The two people were surrounded by an intense pressure and the people around them were blown back several paces.
Bart managed to stabilize his body. He stared at the weak-looking brown-haired person opposite him. The other man was still smiling kindly and seemed to be quite relaxed. In contrast, Bart was being pushed to the edge. The strong man’s arm was bulging with muscles and veins as it held the big sword. His face was sweating.
Bart was feeling that the pressure in his hands was becoming too much and he would not be able to endure it much longer.
“Clang!”
Enoch rolled aside to avoid the big sword that flew over him. He stared at Old John, shouting: “Forgive you? Does your apology mean that we should just die?!”
“Stupid Enoch!” Honey stamped her foot. “It’s your fault that my beloved is angry!”
Eric ran toward Bart, who was flung aside by Old John, and picked up the brawny man: “Bart, are you okay?”
“Eric,” Bart’s voice is very dry. “Let’s get out of here. That person is … a Sword Saint.”
Enoch heard Bart’s words and stared at Old John in amazement.
The difference between the rankings in “Mixed Blood” is very brutal. The higher the rank, the greater the difference.
For the warrior class with the same equipment, 10 Swordsmen are needed to fight a Grand Swordsman. 20 Grand Swordsmen are needed to fight a Sword Master, 50 Sword Masters are needed to fight a Grand Sword Master, and 100 Grand Sword Masters are needed to fight a single Sword Saint. As for a War God, that is on the same level as a nuclear weapon.
The only thing that can break this law is when the protagonist is fighting. Of course, the ability to leapfrog over others who are higher in rank has always been the prerogative of the protagonist.
The strength and potential of the gold mercenary team is indeed very strong, but they are still not enough to face a Sword Saint.
“You can’t leave.” Old John smiled kindly: “I have to satisfy the wishes of the little master.”
Eric finally gave up and pulled out his weapon, a shimmering long sword that seemed to be made of light. Even at this time, the blond young man was still a gentleman and said: “I offended you.”
The light elements attached themselves to Eric’s body, blessing him. He approached Old John cautiously. Bart recovered his great sword and joined the attack.
Enoch looked at the three people who are entangled with each other then at Xiu and Du Ze. He whispered to Honey: “I will go kill the gnome, so – ouch!”
Enoch held his aching leg while Honey ruthlessly glared at him, though she never stopped her chanting.
Old John and Eric’s swords clashed. Old John kicked Eric’s helmet and armor. The blond youth was flung to the edge of the plaza and hit a wall. Then, displaying great agility and flexibility, Old John avoided Bart’s great sword, bent his body, and wrapped his legs around Bart’s neck and threw him on a wall. After all this, Old John breathed gently and did not chase the others to the edge of the plaza. Instead, he but looked at Honey.
“It’s not good to play with fire, child.”
Honey did not answer and she chanted the spell faster. The fire elements gathered together, forming an eight-meter-long Dragon in the air.
“… Dragon Fire!”
Honey directed the huge fire Dragon to attack Old John. Suddenly, the sky was filled with a bird’s cry and the Fire Phoenix flew to the Dragon. Compared to the eight-meter-long Dragon, the Phoenix looked tiny;.i It was only the size of the Dragon’s paw. However, the red bird with its small claws seized the Dragon’s backbone and then forcibly fanned its wings, flying up.
The Dragon was just made of fire elements, but the enemy was a real Fire Phoenix. Honey stared, her eyes wide with amazement: “Fire, Fire Phoenix?!”
In this world, the Fire Phoenix is a god beast and the king of fire. The dragon made of fire elements was being absorbed by the Fire Phoenix whose feathers became covered with a layer of bright red gold. It tweeted then fanned its wings down. The fire elements it had collected flowed down from the feathers and straight towards Honey.
Bart was furious and his voice cracked as he said: “Young mistress-”
“Boom!!!”
The air became hazy as many papers were turned to ash in an instant. A figure awkwardly ran out of the smoke and ash. It was Enoch, carrying Honey.
*cough* *cough* The thief was coughing.
Honey, lying on Enoch’s back, cried beautifully:3 “Wu wu,4 if Grandpa was here, he wouldn’t let a bird bully me!”
Bart and Eric ’s were relieved, but before they could take a breath they saw Old John standing in front of them, smiling. The brown-haired man said nothing, but the way he raised his weapon spoke volumes.
A beam of light fell across the plaza. The light was so stealthy that even Old John did not notice it until the light reached his body.
“Thump.”
Old John looked at his broken chest. There was still no expression on the face of the elf, but the quivering bow of his hand revealed showed what had happened.
“That was a holy arrow…” Old John glanced at the arrow that pierced his chest. It was at the third star on his chest – where a man’s heart was located. “I have to trouble little master Xiu to manage this.”
The mercenary team was also as surprised. They were not only shocked that their teammate had worked so silently and invisibly, but also because the brown-haired man that they had fought with was actually a mechanical puppet!
The elf looked at the wires and metal parts exposed by Old John’s wound then shifted his gaze to Du Ze. He raised his bow and notched an arrow,aiming it at Xiu.
“Don’t move, you are captured,”5 said the elf.
Xiu let go of Du Ze. His face was still innocent-looking as he said: “Do you think you have the ability?”
Xiu smiled. “Have you forgotten? This is … the Gnome Ruins.”
“Wake up, Zaphion.”6 Xiu’s voice was soft, as if he was calling a sleeping child.
Realizing that something was wrong, the elf did not hesitate to loose the arrow, but it did not hit its target since Old John used his body to block the arrow – for a mechanical puppet, its parts can be replaced at any time, but he cannot allow the little master to be hurt.
The elf tried to shoot another arrow, but it was too late. The ground shook violently and the whole plaza cracked down the middle as a huge, silvery mechanical puppet rose from underground. Although it was huge, the design was exquisite. On its chest was six stars. Its body was sleek and smooth, just like a work of art.
It is rumored that every circle of the Kabbalah Tree of Life has a guardian Archangel, so the gnomes built 10 six-star mechanical puppets with the finest materials, placed them under each plaza, and gave them names of the legendary Archangels. Each of the six-star mechanical puppets is equivalent to a War God.
Even though the mercenary squad does not know these tales of the gnome, they still felt the danger. The pressure from the perfect mechanical puppet was extremely strong, like something that only a superior force could muster.
Zaphion, the mechanical puppet, meekly kneeled and lowered its head in front of the small figure of the gnome. Xiu touched its outer shell. The mechanical puppet in front of him was made of the most advanced materials and its creation was a triumph of the highest technology of the gnome race.
“Destroy them.”
After Zaphion was ordered, its silver-white shell was filled with grey runes and it turned to the mercenary squad, its eyes flashing crimson as it readied itself for the attack.
“Bang-”
With just one blow, Bart, who had attacked first, suffered a serious injury and lost the ability to fight. The arrows of the elf accurately hit the eyes and joints of Zaphion, but they were ineffective since they could not break its defenses. The elf’s impassive face finally showed an expression – the fear of death.
As their situation became serious, the fool finally reacted: WTF, the protagonist really wants to kill the mercenary team? Wait a minute, Eric is the rival, Enoch is a future brother, and Honey, that little loli, is also one of the harem candidates! Are you really going to kill your potential brother and sister?
Du Ze thought hard but he still couldn’t understand why the protagonist was trying to kill the mercenary team. The only thing he could think of was that a dialogue option triggered a bloodbath.
Some silly, Moe person tried to save those potential stocks: “They have to die?”
Protagonist, if your little brother dies, who will serve you? If your sister dies, who will let you push her down? If your rival dies, who will fight you for a lifetime? Protagonist, you have to think twice before you act!
Xiu stared at the black-haired youth. The gnome’s amber eyes overflowed with a gloomy emotion.
“I heard you. I think they have to die,” said Xiu.
“Boom!”
Eric hit a wall with great force. His right hand was broken and his face was half covered in blood. He watched as the mechanical puppet was about to kill his companion. He pulled Pulling a diamond-shaped pendant engraved with an element symbol from his neck. that had an element symbol and was filled with golden liquid, Eric quickly crushed the pendant that was filled with golden liquid..
“Come on -”
A dazzling golden light burst forth and Du Ze, who was still pondering the meaning of Xiu’s words, closed his eyes in pain. He felt a person grab him from behind and retreat quickly.
Xiu stretched out a hand but couldn’t even catch even Du Ze’s clothing. He glared at Enoch who had suddenly appeared and taken Du Ze away. In a voice filled with anger, he called: “Zaphion!”
Zaphion seized Enoch, but when the puzzled mechanical puppet opened its hand, there was nothing in it. Enoch appeared some distance away. He was carrying Du Ze and running towards Eric’s group where a portal had opened.
An intense light flashed. In the plaza, there was now no mercenary team and no black-haired youth. Xiu watched them disappear and his nails dug deep into his flesh. His little body was trembling.
******
******
Don’t look, don’t think, don’t touch!
This man is mine.
– [black box]
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The author has something to say:
Rival: I like you …
Protagonist: Die. (Summons Machines)
Reader: A dialogue option triggered a bloodbath.
***
Reader: I like you …
Protagonist: Me, too (Pushes down the Reader)
Author: A conversation option triggers an assault♂.