---Third POV---
Due to the unresolved issue with resurrection materials, the second option had been shelved.
Crafting guns barehanded was unrealistic.
Among all the players, the one with the best craftsmanship was ProGamer_Daddy, but even he hadn't come into contact with such technology.
It was impossible to complete an entire series of tasks, from blueprints to materials to component molds, within a dozen days.
And then, to extract a viable gun prototype from a pile of rejects and start mass production? Unrealistic.
But homemade bombs? That was doable.
"Based on the intel from Viktor, the goblins are still in a tribal civilization stage."
"Although homemade bombs aren't very powerful, they're incredibly effective against a civilization that knows nothing about them!"
"Even if it doesn't directly reduce their numbers, it can at least wear them down!"
"The key is that this stuff is easy to make once we have the materials—ten days is more than enough!"
He pulled out a formula he had scrawled on the road with a charcoal pencil and continued, "I've got several formulas for homemade bombs here. Basic ingredients like plant ash and charcoal are easy to find, so I won't even mention them."
"The main missing ingredients are sulfur—the classic component of gunpowder—or saltpeter—a more traditional, folk alternative."
The other three players gaped in astonishment.
"Ohhh—"
ProGamer_Daddy frowned. "Why do you all look like you've never heard of this before? We discussed this on the forum, didn't we?"
CowardlySurvivor spread his hands. "No idea. We heard there'd be fighting, so we came."
Who cared about the details?
Just charge into the battlefield and spam skills—that was all that mattered.
"Who spends all their time on the forums like you guys do?" another player chimed in.
"..." Silence was ProGamer_Daddy's native tongue at this point.
It didn't matter anyway. As long as the group had one brain, and that was him, they were fine.
So, he continued, "The forest we're in has been abandoned for hundreds of years. Finding saltpeter or sulfur mines isn't impossible."
"If we can find either of these, I can make the bombs. The more we find, the stronger our combat capabilities!"
CowardlySurvivor asked, "You know how to make bombs?"
"I liked dismantling firecrackers as a kid. The principle is simple enough. The tricky part is just the material ratios."
Bomb-making was basically just balancing oxidizers and reducers while maximizing explosive power.
Even if there were casualties in the process, they weren't in the real world.
If they died, they died.
CowardlySurvivor sighed. "... This sounds so illegal!"
Didn't feel much more legit than making guns.
ProGamer_Daddy was about to ask for volunteers when he suddenly realized he didn't know the other players' names.
"Right, I know CowardlySurvivor, but what about you two? What are your IDs? I didn't catch them on the forum."
In truth, their usernames were... long, and he didn't know how to pronounce them.
"Oh, this?"
The player obsessed with turning Luminaris into a twin-tailed loli grinned.
"Just call me Apple, and he's ThorNikeDumDumCaryliahZuhoaBobGihandulfoi. If that's too hard, call him Thor."
"Ok." ProGamer_Daddy nodded in acknowledgment.
"I've found some general info online about environments where saltpeter and sulfur might be found. Shall we head out now?"
CowardlySurvivor frowned. "No suspicious locations? Just searching blindly?"
"We've barely ventured outside the safe zone. What suspicious locations do we even know about?" ProGamer_Daddy retorted.
If they did, he wouldn't need help in the first place.
That made sense after some thought. Apple suggested, "How about we ask Viktor?"
The players hadn't been out much, but NPCs should know the surroundings, right?
"Good idea!" CowardlySurvivor immediately agreed.
ProGamer_Daddy sighed helplessly. "That's what I thought too, but he's gone."
"Gone?" CowardlySurvivor jerked his head up. "Isn't he always lying outside the church?"
"Sometimes he strolls nearby, but that's usually around noon or dusk," Thor added.
The three players, unconvinced, insisted on checking for themselves.
The spot where the undead usually lay was empty.
They searched every spot mentioned on the forum where Viktor might appear, even climbing onto the church roof and asking other players.
Still, nothing.
CowardlySurvivor hissed through his teeth. "Huh? This is seriously weird…"
Apple muttered, "Normally, even if he goes out of town, he's never gone for more than half an hour!"
From the moment ProGamer_Daddy noticed Viktor was missing to now, they had been searching for far longer than that.
Thor pondered for a moment.
"It's fine if Viktor is gone. We can just ask another NPC. Any of them should do!"
Although Edgar had been missing for days, and Luminaris had just been tormented by three players, there was still one option.
---
"Alyanne~~~~"
Four voices in perfect harmony startled Alyanne so much that she nearly smashed the newly carved wooden stool leg she was working on.
She turned to look at the four heads poking above the counter, instinctively pulling up the NPC interaction menu.
One hand hovered over the "adjust favorability" button as she warily asked,
"What do you want?"
Though they couldn't speak the same language, they had long developed a functional method of communication.
"Well, here's the thing…"
Through a chaotic mix of gestures, she finally believed they weren't here to cause trouble or flirt with her. Her guard relaxed slightly.
She gently set the stool leg aside.
There were too many knick-knacks needed in the task area—breaking this would be bad.
She tilted her head in thought.
"You're looking for strange white or green rocks and asking me for directions?"
She gestured the meaning of her sentence to the players.
They nodded fervently, eyes still brimming with expectation.
Alyanne stared at them for three seconds before breaking eye contact, slowly and firmly shaking her head while crossing her arms in an "X."
"I don't know."
"Knew it…" Disappointment flickered in ProGamer_Daddy's eyes.
Apple, unwilling to give up, tried to console him.
"Maybe it's because the game's storyline hasn't progressed to the point where explosives have been invented. They might not recognize the significance of chemical minerals yet—maybe they've seen them but didn't pay attention."
"Let's just ask about places where mines might appear!"
The group resumed their frantic gestures.
Even if she didn't know about mines, could she point them toward underground caves or areas with deep rock layers?
Alyanne shook her head again.
The players took another step back.
If caves were out of the question, what about large maple or oak forests nearby?
While gesturing, CowardlySurvivor hesitated.
"Wait, dude. Does this really have anything to do with mineral deposits?"
"That's what the internet says. Let's check it out!" ProGamer_Daddy replied.
Any lead, no matter how tenuous, was worth investigating.
The players weren't tired of gesturing, but Alyanne had enough.
"Stop!"
She rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on.
The players' frantic gestures were chaotic enough, and their chatter made it worse.
Even though she kept telling herself not to provoke these Watchers, her patience was wearing thin.
"I really don't know!"
Once the conversation started, the rest of it flowed naturally.
"I don't know how the leader introduced me to you guys, but I'm just an abandoned child thrown into the Great Oak Forest."
"As for those stones, I don't know anything about them!"
She didn't even know the way out of the Great Oak Forest. Her familiarity with the surroundings was probably less than that of the players.
What useful information could she provide?
Or perhaps the real anomaly was The Watchers, which wanted to establish a base in the Great Oak Forest!
She once again crossed her arms in front of her chest in an "X" and maintained a cold expression.
ProGamer_Daddy finally caught on.
"This 'X' gesture probably means she doesn't know anything?"
"Huh? A cultural difference in a game?" CowardlySurvivor was astonished.
---
Two minutes later.
Bang!
The door to the quest point was slammed shut.
A few seconds later, Alyanne seemed to realize something. After forcibly ejecting the four players with brute force, she reopened the quest point door.
The four players, who had been completely shut out, sat nearby, sighed heavily, and stared at the direction of the quest point.
"Sigh..."
Their plan to start with the NPC to locate sulfur and saltpeter mines? Out the window.
"Do we really have to use the dumbest method and explore outside bit by bit?" CowardlySurvivor groaned, resting his chin on his palms.
Apple shook his head. "By the time we finish making bombs, the grass on the hostage's grave will be taller than us."
"Or we could just gamble on luck," Thor suggested with a shrug. "Maybe someone steps on something lucky outside and finds a fortune."
ProGamer_Daddy glanced at him. "... I'm not sure if you're complimenting someone for being lucky or not."
After lamenting for a while, they decided to regroup.
What if they really got lucky and found the minerals they were looking for in one go?
They decided to start searching along the riverbank.
First of all, according to the experts on reddit, rivers or streams in the forest might have saltpeter deposits in the nearby rocks.
Saltpeter could leach from rocks due to erosion and leaching effects of water.
Moreover, there was an iron ore vein near the riverbank.
The reddit experts also said that sulfur mines often coexisted with other mineral veins.
The riverbank perfectly matched these two characteristics.
---
After a whole morning of meticulous searching.
They reached a unanimous conclusion—reddit experts were unreliable.
"Ahhh—!" ProGamer_Daddy let out a roar toward the sky and collapsed onto the riverbank.
"Finally back! Let me rest a bit!"
Although they were only a few hundred meters from the town, he was completely drained.
Both mentally and physically.
The other three players collapsed beside him.
"It was torture..."
"The monsters outside are way too much..."
The four players looked miserable, with tattered clothes and dust-covered bodies.
CowardlySurvivor even had a patch of his hair pecked clean by something.
---Four Hours Earlier---
"Alright, let's stick to the riverbank," ProGamer_Daddy had said, gripping his Thornleaf Blade. "Less vegetation means fewer places for monsters to hide."
They had barely walked fifty meters when the water beside them erupted. A fish the size of a small dog leaped onto the shore.
"What the—" CowardlySurvivor stumbled backward. "They're not supposed to come on land!"
Apple raised his hand and began the incantation. "Ancient flames that dance in midnight's breath, hear my call through ember's depths. Let the fire of creation flow through mortal—"
The fish lunged toward him, breaking his concentration.
"Forget it—Fireball!" he shouted, skipping straight to the end. A weak, sputtering candle flame materialized and shot toward the fish. It hit dead-on, but did no damage. It only seemed to anger the creature.
The fish lunged at Thor, who swung his Thornleaf Blade wildly. He managed to nick its side, sending it flopping back toward the water.
"There's more!" ProGamer_Daddy pointed at the rippling water where numerous shadows were converging.
"Oh, by the migh of Odin. Run!" Thor yelled, already sprinting ahead.
"Bro, you are way too in your role!"
"Just run!" Thor shouted.
They dashed along the riverbank, pursued by a small army of flopping, chomping fish monsters. Just as they thought they'd outrun the aquatic threat, a flash of vibrant color swooped down from above.
A bird with wings as wide as a man's armspan and brilliant rainbow plumage dove straight at CowardlySurvivor. Its wing caught him across the face with surprising force, nearly knocking him off his feet.
ProGamer_Daddy frantically began reciting, "Sacred radiance that banishes shadow's might, answer my plea with—"
The rainbow bird swooped again, and he ducked, losing his place in the incantation.
"Uh... restore the life that... no, that's not it... Lux Sanctus... Holy Light!" he shouted in panic, skipping most of the words.
A feeble beam of golden light shot from his palm, much weaker than it should have been.
The light struck the bird—and to everyone's horror, the creature seemed to absorb it, growing slightly larger.
"Your damn healing spell is making it stronger!" Apple shrieked. "Use your blade!"
ProGamer_Daddy fumbled at his belt, nearly dropping the Thornleaf Blade before swinging it awkwardly. The bird easily dodged and circled back for another pass.
Thor began his incantation, "Crystal streams that pierce the dawning sky, heed my will as waters—"
The bird made another pass, forcing him to dodge.
"This is taking too long!" he shouted in frustration. "Aqua Sagitta... Water Arrow!"
A thin, watery projectile formed before him. The pathetic arrow still managed to hit the bird's wing, disrupting its flight just enough for CowardlySurvivor to take a wild swing with his own blade.
The blade connected, sending feathers flying. The bird let out an indignant squawk and retreated to the tree line.
"That was close," he panted, then yelped as the bird returned with three teammates. "Oh come on!"
As they continued fleeing, ProGamer_Daddy stepped on what appeared to be a moss-covered stone. The "stone" let out a croak and released a cloud of noxious green gas.
"It's toxic!" Apple shouted. "Don't breathe it in!"
Too late—ProGamer_Daddy had already inhaled a lungful. His vision blurred, and he staggered forward.
"Hold on!" CowardlySurvivor grabbed his arm. "We need to get him away from that gas and frog!"
"Can't help!" Thor was already occupied, frantically trying to shake off what looked like a fat yellow caterpillar but was actually a small brightly-colored snake that had dropped from an overhanging branch onto his shoulder.
Apple tried his incantation again. "Ancient flames that dance in midnight's breath—watch out!"
He had to push Thor away from an approaching fish, completely losing his focus.
"A fish? This is impossible! Ignis Spiritus... Fireball!" He cast the abbreviated version again, aiming at the ground near the fish and toxic frog.
Without the full incantation, the spell produced nothing more than a spark the size of a matchhead. The tiny spark somehow happened to land directly on the frog's sensitive skin, making it jump in surprise back into its hiding place.
Unfortunately, the commotion attracted even more wildlife.
ProGamer_Daddy, still dizzy from the toxin, stumbled forward and nearly toppled into a patch of innocent-looking grass.
"Stop!" Apple yanked him back just in time, pointing at the thin, nearly invisible strands glinting in the sunlight. "Spider silk trap."
As ProGamer_Daddy's vision cleared, he saw a massive web stretching between two trees, with something large and many-legged waiting at its center.
"I hate this forest," he groaned.
Trying to focus despite the chaos, he attempted the full incantation, "Sacred radiance that banishes shadow's might, answer my plea with heaven's light. Let healing essence through soul-bound channels flow, restore the life that darkness sought to overthrow! Lux Sanctus... Holy Light!"
This time, he managed to complete it without interruption. A proper golden glow enveloped him, neutralizing the toxin completely.
"That's how it's supposed to work!" he said triumphantly.
They changed direction, moving away from both the river and the denser parts of the forest. They'd barely gone ten paces when CowardlySurvivor screamed.
Something had swooped down and pecked a clean patch of hair from his scalp.
"What was that?!" he shrieked, clutching his head.
"I don't know, but it's coming back!" Thor pointed at a small, owl-like bird diving at incredible speed.
"Ancient flames that—" Apple began, but the owl-creature swooped again. "Damn! Ignis Spiritus... Fireball!"
His abbreviated cast produced only a tiny spark that missed entirely, dissipating harmlessly against a tree.
"I can't concentrate long enough for the full incantation, and the shortcuts are too weak," he groaned. "Plus, I'm nearly completely out of mana now."
ProGamer_Daddy swung his Thornleaf Blade at the diving bird, spinning in a clumsy circle that nearly toppled him over. By sheer luck, the flat of the blade smacked the creature away.
"We need to get back to town," he panted.
For the next three hours, they'd attempted to navigate back, encountering one bizarre and dangerous creature after another.
ProGamer_Daddy had nearly depleted his mana reserves healing their various injuries—Apple's self-inflicted burned hand, Thor's snakebite, CowardlySurvivor's pecked scalp, and his own toxin-induced hallucinations.
That was a weird run for life.
The constant appearance of creatures from strange places had them on edge, mentally and physically.
---
Now, back at the riverbank, they lay defeated, not a single rare mineral to show for their troubles.
"I think it's safe to say none of us have any luck," ProGamer_Daddy sighed, examining a new tear in his once-pristine tunic.
CowardlySurvivor nodded, gingerly touching his partially bald spot. "Agreed..."
"I heard there's an iron mine pit discovered earlier. Why don't we try our luck there?" Apple asked.
What if the iron mine also contained other minerals? Jackpot!
"Don't!" the other three shouted in unison.
ProGamer_Daddy sat up straight at this suggestion, doing a sudden sit-up. Lying back on the sand, he weakly explained, "Someone already tried opening that mine. There's a post about it on the forum, and it even got pinned."
CowardlySurvivor said, "The mine is sealed by some NPC-applied enchantment. Not only can you not open it, but staying near it too long will drain your SAN value."
Thor added, "Even I know those two people hold the record for the lowest SAN value, dropping below the passing line of 60!"
Natural recovery would take three to four years.
The penalty was brutal.
In short, after working hard all morning, and putting aside the emotional and physical trauma of exploration, their progress in finding rare materials was virtually zero.
They idled on the riverbank for a long time, resting to reduce their fatigue debuff.
Then, supporting each other, they returned to the town.
The three temporarily grouped players had things to do and logged off at the church.
ProGamer_Daddy was left alone to return to the Lucky Stars Team's headquarters.
He planned to change clothes.
At the entrance, he happened to run into Hedgehog and NeverShowOff returning for a meal.
Seeing ProGamer_Daddy's state, Hedgehog nearly spat out the sweetfruit in his mouth.
"Whoa! Did you go through a Battle Royale?"
"Pretty much. There was both battle and survival." ProGamer_Daddy forced a tired smile.
He casually took a sweetfruit from Hedgehog's arms and bit half of it.
The taste nearly brought him to tears. "So good. So good!"
Although it was still overwhelmingly sweet, for someone who'd been drinking water conjured by player skills all morning, the natural flavor was a godsend.
Hedgehog and NeverShowOff looked at him speechlessly.
Hedgehog quietly stuffed the last sweetfruit into his own mouth.
"If I remember correctly, your last message was about exploring along the riverbank."
"When the fish in the water treat you as prey and even chase you onto land, you'll understand why I'm dehydrated," ProGamer_Daddy said weakly.
The journey was full of hardships, not worth recounting.
The three walked back together while chatting.
"Enough about me. What about your side?"
Hedgehog took a bite of the fruit.
"Garble is still out scouting for the goblin nest. He probably won't be back until evening."
"Show and I managed to make ash from plant matter. The charcoal is also in production. We're just waiting on you."
ProGamer_Daddy gave a bitter laugh. "You'll have to wait."
"No worries. Once I wrap up my tasks, I'll join you," NeverShowOff comforted.
As they chatted, a notification popped up in front of all three of them.
[Ding! Limited-Time Quest (0/10)!]
[Faction Leader Viktor seems to be in some trouble outside the safe zone. Ten returnees are needed to head to the specified location to assist!]
[The location coordinates are as follows:...]