Chapter 35: Overbearing President Mei, Protecting Her Man Online!
After devouring every last dessert, both Rovel and Mei found themselves moving with a sluggish, contented weight. They could barely walk, and a silent, mutual agreement was reached: for a long time to come, neither of them would be craving anything sweet.
Mei took the lead, guiding Rovel on a leisurely stroll through the streets of Changkong City. The initial sugar rush had faded, replaced by a pleasant, lazy afternoon haze.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted a short distance ahead. The ambient city noise was pierced by panicked shouts, the words echoing clearly between the buildings: "A Death Soldier has appeared!"
Civilians scattered like startled birds, their faces masks of fear. Rovel and Mei exchanged a knowing glance, a silent spark of understanding passing between them. Without a word, they broke into a jog, moving directly against the tide of the fleeing crowd and toward the source of the chaos.
"Not bad," Rovel remarked, a slight grin touching his lips. "We're in luck today. That's the third Death Soldier we've run into already."
Not far from the scene, a squad of players had already established a perimeter. They were busy on their comms, contacting other standby units to coordinate a pincer attack. Their eyes remained locked on the lurching, grotesque figure of the Death Soldier, tracking its every move.
Then they saw it—two figures running straight for the monster. Their brows furrowed in confusion, which quickly twisted into sneering contempt when they realized one of them was another player.
"Should we stop them?" one of the squad members asked, his tone laced with amusement.
"If they want to get themselves killed, let them," the leader replied with a dismissive wave of his hand, his expression utterly indifferent. "Saves us the trouble."
While Changkong City wasn't exactly a small town, it wasn't a sprawling metropolis either. It hosted a single Intermediate Training Academy, with the rest being low-level institutions. Consequently, aside from the very first wave of Descenders who had spawned here, few high-level players ever bothered to visit. This squad had been farming Death Soldiers in the area for several days without seeing a single rival team. As far as they were concerned, they were the only hunters on these grounds.
In a region with such relatively scarce resources, the local NPCs were naturally weaker. An NPC capable of single-handedly dispatching a Death Soldier was practically unheard of; typically, it was a job for the city guard or other organized groups. The idea that this lone player and his companion could succeed was laughable.
"But... but that NPC looks like she's Level 31!" someone in the squad suddenly exclaimed, his voice sharp with alarm as he squinted at the data above Mei's head.
The leader's disdainful expression shattered, instantly replaced by a mask of shock and fury. "Level 31?! What the hell is an NPC that high-level doing in this dump? Dammit! Move, now! Stop them before they steal our kill!"
They scrambled to move, but it was already too late. In the few seconds they had wasted, Rovel and Mei had closed the distance and were now less than ten meters from the Death Soldier.
"Mei, you don't have a sword with you. Let me handle this," Rovel said, his voice calm and steady as he stepped slightly in front of her.
"Eh?" Raiden Mei tilted her head, her violet eyes filled with a flicker of confusion. "Did Mr. Rovel bring a sword?"
In response, Rovel reached into his pocket and produced a sleek, wickedly sharp scalpel—the very one Mobius had gifted him.
"A scalpel is also a blade," he chuckled, the polished metal glinting in the afternoon light.
Raiden Mei rolled her eyes playfully at his dramatic flair, but a soft smile touched her lips. She nodded, her tone shifting to one of genuine concern. "Mr. Rovel, please be careful."
She had killed Death Soldiers herself and knew that while they were a nightmare for ordinary people, they wouldn't pose a significant threat to someone like Rovel.
Generally, Death Soldiers that manifested within the city limits were only around Level 10. The ambient Honkai Energy concentration simply wasn't high enough to spawn anything more powerful. A Level 10 Death Soldier possessed physical attributes roughly double that of a normal human, and when equipped with its signature 'Death Soldier's Scythe,' its average combat stats easily exceeded fifty points.
However, their attack patterns were brutally simple. Beyond their raw stats, they were predictable and clumsy. Rovel, whose Basic Kendo had already reached the Minor Accomplishment proficiency, and whose own attributes dwarfed those of the creature before him, was an overwhelmingly superior opponent.
True to his assessment, the moment Rovel entered its attack range, the Death Soldier had only just begun to lurch into motion when his scalpel became a silver blur. It slid across the creature's throat with surgical precision.
Hokushin Ittō-ryū: Battōjutsu!
[-379!]
[-79!] (Sword Qi Bonus)
Seeing that the single strike hadn't been enough to fell it, Rovel pivoted on his heel, the scalpel reversing its course in a fluid, deadly arc. A second slash, followed by a third, landed in the same spot before the creature could even raise its scythe.
The Death Soldier's health bar vanished. It froze for a split second before dissolving into a cloud of black dust, which scattered on the wind.
[Mobius's Scalpel has collected: Death Soldier's Blood x4]
[Gained Experience Points: 300]
[EXP to next level: 6000/7500]
Rovel casually retracted the scalpel, the entire process having taken less than three seconds. After being so thoroughly humbled by Raiden Mei's power for so long, he had almost forgotten that he, too, was incredibly strong. This was his first time actually killing a Death Soldier in the game, but he felt no particular thrill. It was, in every sense of the word, just a monster.
[Death Soldier's Blood: The blood of a common Death Soldier. A low-value research material with little practical use.]
"Mr. Rovel, let's go," Raiden Mei said, moving to his side, ready to continue their walk.
Before they could take a step, the squad of players jogged up, their expressions a mixture of awe and frustration. They quickly formed a loose circle, blocking Rovel and Mei's path.
"Wait a moment!"
Rovel calmly moved to shield Raiden Mei behind him. It was a purely instinctual gesture. He knew perfectly well that she was far stronger than him, but as a man, he felt a duty to stand in front at times like this.
"Is there a problem?" Rovel asked, his tone even.
The leader's name, displayed above his head, was 'Funahiki Shin'. Since players couldn't directly see each other's levels, neither side knew the other's strength. Funahiki Shin's gaze flickered past Rovel, landing squarely on Raiden Mei.
A flash of undisguised amazement crossed his face; a woman with Mei's beauty was a rare sight, even in the real world. He quickly tore his eyes away, however, intimidated by the glowing 'Lv. 31' floating beside her. She was definitely not someone they could afford to provoke.
also, in the ten seconds it had taken them to catch up, the Death Soldier had been completely annihilated. A standard thirty-person Level 1 squad would need at least ten to twenty minutes to take one down. The power disparity was staggering. He naturally, and incorrectly, assumed that the high-level NPC had done all the work. The thought that Rovel, a mere player, could have soloed it never even crossed his mind. At this stage of the game, the number of players worldwide who could solo a Death Soldier could be counted on one hand. Why would this random guy be one of them?
"Brother, you know the rules, right?" Funahiki Shin directed his question at Rovel, but perhaps because of Mei's intimidating presence, his voice was a few notches softer than he intended.
"Rules?" Rovel narrowed his eyes slightly. "What rules? I wasn't aware this place had any."
"The Death Soldiers in Changkong City have been claimed by our 'Funahiki Family', understand?" Funahiki Shin's words were laced with a poorly veiled threat. If it weren't for the Level 31 beauty standing right behind Rovel, he wouldn't have bothered with words at all.
"I don't understand," Rovel retorted, his voice remaining level. "How did a public menace like a Death Soldier become your private property? Are you prepared to take responsibility for all the casualties they cause?"
"Are you playing dumb or are you really that stupid?" Funahiki Shin's patience snapped. "Don't think you're safe just because you've got a Level 31 NPC bodyguard. I doubt she's going to follow you around every second of every day."
He took a menacing step forward. "And once you're alone in our territory... well, you should know what the consequences will be, right?"
"Are you... threatening Mr. Rovel?"
Raiden Mei's voice suddenly cut through the air, sharp and laced with a chilling coldness that made the temperature seem to drop. She could clearly see the ill intent these other Descenders held for Rovel. And she would absolutely not permit anyone to harm him.
"We were just... chatting with him..." Funahiki Shin stammered, instinctively taking a step back. He hadn't expected the NPC to have such a close relationship with the player, to the point of actively defending him.
"Right?" he added, shooting a venomous, meaningful glare at Rovel, a clear warning to play along.
Rovel acted as if he hadn't seen the look at all. He turned his head slightly and spoke softly to Raiden Mei, his voice carrying just enough for everyone to hear.
"Mei, they are indeed threatening me."
In the next second, there was a blur of motion. Funahiki Shin's eyes went wide with disbelief as a fist connected with his chest. The force of the blow sent him flying backward, his body already beginning to dissolve into shimmering fragments of data before he even hit the ground.
Raiden Mei stood where he had been, her arm still extended in a perfect punching posture.
Even without a sword, with her superhuman physical attributes, these small-time bullies couldn't withstand a single one of her strikes.
Overbearing President Mei, protecting her man online.
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