Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 152: Chess Tactics
At midnight, Nol suddenly felt a heaviness come over him.
The blood potion wore off, and the magic ended. A tingling itch spread through his joints as Nol’s slender limbs returned to normal, restoring him to the appearance of a mature young man. The smaller version of Teest he had been holding in his arms disappeared, and the solid form of Teest landed on top of him, pressing down on Nol with a grunt.
In the next instant, Teest immediately woke up and opened his eyes. In this position, Nol kissed his cheek. “It’s just the blood potion wearing off.”
Teest hummed in acknowledgment, climbed off Nol, and lay down beside him, still hooking his arm around Nol’s waist. His hair turned silver-white again, spreading out on the pillow and tickling Nol’s cheek.
They were sleeping in the guest room of the Border Collie village chief on a bed usually reserved for merchants. It was soft and comfortable but slightly musty, having not been used much.
Outside the window, it was dark. Nol used the light from the fireplace and focused on the handsome face he hadn’t seen in a while but found incredibly familiar.
It was a strange feeling.
If Star Stealer Sol suddenly appeared, they would be powerless to resist. Yet, knowing Teest was by his side gave him a peculiar sense of security, as if they were in a safe zone where fighting was prohibited.
Nol couldn’t help but trace his fingers over the spots he had kissed. Teest’s golden eyes blinked, and he adjusted his position, pressing his face against Nol’s fingertips.
His own hand glided down Nol’s shoulder, cupping the back of Nol’s hand in his palm.
“Are you unable to sleep because you’re thinking of plans, or because you want to watch me sleep?” Teest asked with a smile.
“I want to watch you,” Nol admitted openly. “I’ve found that I quite miss this face.”
But he was indeed thinking about the future. The “domestication” had become a thorn in his side. Not just for him and Teest but controlling any strong individual close to them would complicate matters.
He knew worrying unnecessarily was pointless. To win this battle, he had to learn more about “Star Stealer Sol”.
Whether it was the system’s task or the sudden oracle in the cave, everything urged him towards the Dragon’s Lair. The Dragon’s Lair had only one moon, and even without the urging, he would have investigated.
The eerie repetition of the oracle made Nol more cautious. He had communicated with Kando to meet the “Loser” false god beforehand, but Kando had refused.
“Now isn’t the time.” Kando murmured. “’Loser’ told me the time to meet you, saying you weren’t determined enough yet. Oh, don’t look like that—the guy isn’t pretending to be profound; it’s just scared, afraid you’d betray it in your quest for peace.”
Nol: “……”
This failed false god was sadly realistic. But Nol could understand; if it were discovered by Star Stealer Sol while being used as a tool in the cave, its fate would be unimaginable.
Not determined enough, huh…
Nol looked back at Teest’s eyes, only to find him moving closer, their noses almost touching.
“You’re distracted,” Teest said in a breathy voice.
“I was just thinking…”
“About Star Stealer Sol?” Teest said casually, “Oh, I get it. You’re not well-versed in those tormenting tricks, so it’s normal to be out of ideas for a moment. Honey, since you can’t sleep, let’s talk about hell.”
He reached out, gently caressing the back of Nol’s neck, his fingertips brushing lightly over the pendant clasp. Teest shared all his deductions about “domestication” with Nol.
Besides the possible condition of “weak connection to the outside world”, the Mad Monk had many more theories.
Teest’s voice was unusually soft. “…If this speculation is correct, Star Stealer Sol won’t easily domesticate players. The connections among top players are too strong, and their time here is too short, making it difficult to act.”
“Apart from ‘weak worldly connections’, its abilities must be limited by other conditions. Otherwise, it could easily create zealots in droves instead of relying on the ‘reality’ of the Eternal Church’s dungeons for transformation. My guess is, before mastering the system, Star Stealer Sol’s control over this world was limited.”
Teest spoke at a leisurely pace, as if he was discussing an ordinary hunting target.
Nol felt the warmth of the hand on his neck; his emotions and thoughts becoming clearer with its touch.
“It specifically targeted the Demon King, probably for this reason… The Demon King sensed its compatriots and specifically came to the mainland. Usually, it stays in the Desolation Islands, only causing trouble in border areas. I think Star Stealer Sol doesn’t care about the lives of ordinary humans.”
The Demon King was a false god who fell as the “Creator God”. Even in its weakened state, losing most of its sanity, Star Stealer Sol dared not act directly, instead desperately inducing people to go and fight it.
For the world, the “Creator God” holds a uniquely special position.
Nol recalled the “authority transfer” after defeating the Demon King, and the peculiar sense of control he gained with the Demon King’s authority. What Star Stealer Sol wanted might be such power.
He feared the unknown Star Stealer Sol, and Star Stealer Sol feared him. With that thought, Nol felt considerably better.
“Thank you. You’re really good at this.” Nol sighed softly.
“I just put myself in Star Stealer Sol’s shoes. Don’t be misled, though; you’re somewhat abnormal, but unfortunately, your heart isn’t evil enough,” Teest said with a grin, pressing his hand slightly on Nol’s neck.
He stole a kiss, simultaneously taking away Nol’s recent unease.
Indeed, whether it was destiny’s burden or a dark trap, they had to investigate the Dragon’s Lair thoroughly.
As the festering wound burst, pus and blood flowed out. Nol understood that he just needed to regain his composure… Everything would work out. There would always be a way.
At least for now, this moment was theirs to keep.
Nol grasped the front of Teest’s pajamas, deepening their kiss. His other hand gradually slid down, causing Teest’s eyebrows to arch higher.
“Shh, let me tell you a secret. I’m not that tired.”
Nol embraced the increasingly warm body, imitating Teest’s earlier tone. “What about you, Mr. Teest?”
“I have a secret too.” Teest propped himself up, responding decisively to the ambiguous invitation. “This is not a sympathetic share without cost.”
With one hand supporting his body and the other holding Nol’s, his lips pressed against each knuckle. “You see, the ‘Mad Monk’ is also someone with a weak connection to the outside world. This way, you have to keep an eye on me forever.”
Among the long silver-white hair falling down, Nol wrapped his arms around Teest’s neck.
“Alright.” He looked into those golden eyes and responded solemnly.
Then he gently kissed him.
This time, they weren’t lying on pale gravel but on a comfortable bed. There were no golden threads, no imminent explosion of chaotic thoughts—just pure desire.
Perhaps it was the warmth around them that the crackling of the fireplace slowed time down. The room was filled with the brown-yellow glow of the firelight, and the atmosphere thickened with a syrupy sweetness. The ominous thoughts gradually dissipated, and in a daze, even the ordinary cotton sheets felt like velvet.
…Everything was gentle, except for the bite marks on the neck.
As dawn broke outside, Nol caressed the small wounds on his neck with mixed feelings.
Before, he had only noticed Teest’s habit of using overly gentle motions to encourage initiative. Now this “gentleman” had developed a peculiar penchant for biting necks.
From the throat to the back of the neck, Teest had bitten around his neck like adding a unique chain. In reality, a simple skin refresh could solve it, but Nol hesitated for two seconds and decided to leave it.
He used [Creator] to add a high collar to his robe, perfectly covering the swollen bite marks. Teest, meanwhile, stretched out a huge yawn on the bed, wrapping his arms around Nol’s waist and mumbling something unintelligibly.
Nol listened carefully for a while. It was probably a mix of “what do you want to eat this morning” and “what are your plans for today”.
“Return to Paradise,” he said. “Someone mentioned being a mediator, so we’ll catch Painter.”
Then they would have breakfast in Paradise. Simply perfect.
……
Just upon returning to the first floor of the Lost Tower, Nol fell silent.
How to put it, Paradise was a bit… outrageous early in the morning.
The residents of Sheepskin Ball Village were blissfully lying on the ground. A dozen neighbors gathered together, stroking dog heads with faces full of emotion. Nol slowly matched these monsters with the neighbors—ninety percent were neighbors who walked their dogs in the community, and the remaining ten percent were probably small animal enthusiasts.
Even Griffin Little Piel was there, curiously circling a dog-headed puppy, his eyes shining. The pup was also curiously examining Piel’s wings and claws, making it hard to say whose eyes shone brighter.
“I haven’t been able to touch my Wangwang for a long time. It’s also a border collie… wuwu. In this form, small cats and dogs run away when they see me.”
A spider woman’s voice trembled as she hugged the border collie village chief and stroked him wildly. The village chief, while enjoying the petting and sticking out his tongue, was nervously eyeing the barbs on the spider girl’s eight legs, looking very conflicted.
Humans were one thing, but facing such fierce and terrifying monsters before, they could only fight to the death. Now…
“I won’t pay the bill,” he finally said seriously.
“Money? No need for money! Just let me pet you,” the spider woman said with a trembling voice. “I promise not to disturb you.”
Border Collie Village Chief: “……?”
This place is too strange! …But it’s a good kind of strange.
People call it “Paradise”.
It’s filled with all sorts of bizarre monsters. The normally dangerous creatures, even their natural enemies, are unusually friendly towards the dog-headed residents.
They sit together to chat, make plans, and collaborate on hunts. These monsters are terrifyingly smart and powerful. Just this Spider Woman… Above her eight eyes, there appeared complex and eerie bright green patterns. The border collie village chief had read about this in books. It’s the advanced evolution of spiders, the legendary “Venom Queen”.
Spiders are naturally savage and cruel, not fond of communication. Just one Venom Queen could destroy Sheepskin Ball Village ten times over.
But this Spider Woman just gently hugs it, petting it madly while crying, calling it “good doggy”, and even sharing the best chicken with the dog-headed pups around her.
Hmm… Maybe it’s not so terrifying after all…
There were also entire tribes of migrating succubi. The border collie village chief hinted around, and there had never been any violent incidents in Paradise. In the past few months, the worst had been a shouting match and a bit of shoving.
The tower was clean, free from suspicious trash, bones, or feces, and more comfortable than some human cities. Most importantly, it was next to the big city Grape Collar. Their sheep could be sold directly, so there was no need to wait for foreign merchants to come by.
‘It’s much better than before,’ thought the border collie village chief.
But still, he needed further observation. Hmm…
Creating such a place, the leaders here must not be trifled with.
Like the two in front of him.
Seeing Nol, the border collie village chief sniffed, and a meaningful look appeared on his furry face. “Last night’s chicken was indeed delicious. Thank you for your hospitality.”
Hehe, he knew they were male. He had smelled it when they first met.
These two had a special scent… Tsk tsk. The border collie village chief coughed, keeping his knowledge to himself. With the power to control such spatial artifacts, strong enough to kill the Eternal Pope, why bother looking for trouble?
“We’ve checked the snowfields upstairs, and it’s more than enough for building a village and sheep farming. Everyone loves it here. Thank you for ‘your’ protection.”
He rolled his eyes; his tone was very natural.
Cunning guy. Nol chuckled. “I guarantee in my name, this is the safest place in all of Tahe, and it’s for everyone.”
But as soon as breakfast was served, the pleasant time ended.
The Joy Garden Homeowners Association… No, the Paradise Leaders Meeting convened again.
……
Present were Miss Lynn, Officer Luo, Dr. Zhu, and Uncle Ma. Painter brought a large tray of Paradise’s special crispy pastries, eating silently in the corner. The former pope toned down his presence, pretending he didn’t exist.
Nol spoke in his native tongue, openly explaining the situation—including the Demon King’s situation, the truth behind the War of the Two Gods, and Teest’s speculation about “domestication”.
At this point, holding back would do more harm than good. In case something happened to him, Paradise needed someone who understood the full situation.
Fortunately, for those present, “transmigrating to a magical world” was already nonsensical, and life-threatening danger was always present. The “war of the gods” he mentioned was just bullshit on top of bullshit; everyone treated it as a story without any excessive reactions.
Hearing about “domestication”, Uncle Ma’s eyes brightened for a moment. But after hearing “players don’t stay long enough to fabricate experiences”, his gaze dimmed again.
“I wish I had been ‘domesticated’ by whatever… At least then, with my head messed up, my daughter would still be alive,” he muttered quietly, then fell silent.
“Wait a minute. After listening to all this, it’s quite interesting.”
Rosen frowned, standing up from his chair. “Let’s not talk about how the system came to be. In any case, this ‘Star Stealer Sol’ wants to get its hands on it but dares not fight the Demon King. The local capable people in Tahe can at most stabilize the situation, so it summoned players through the system’s power. Since players can’t die, let them fight.”
“That has nothing to do with us,” Uncle Ma said. “Who here isn’t one hit away from death? Bringing us here serves no purpose.”
It could be seen that his mood still wasn’t great.
“Besides, isn’t Xiao Xu supposed to be the opponent of Whatever Stealer? Specifically, bringing him over—isn’t that just digging its own grave?”
“Not necessarily.” Dr. Zhu spoke up calmly. “Star Stealer Sol can’t fully control the system. Maybe pulling Mr. Xu, the creator, here is the system’s act of resistance—based on what I’ve heard, its stance seems more inclined towards Mr. Xu.”
Uncle Ma: “Then it went ahead and grabbed all of us, as if it was picking seeds. According to you, our Xiao Xu wasn’t that strong at the start either. What if he was lost along the way? Wouldn’t all efforts be in vain?”
Rosen’s brows furrowed tighter. “Indeed, Xu Yue’s situation is a bit strange.”
“Strange or not, we can’t do without him.” Lynn coughed, timely interrupting the conversation. Rosen paused for a moment, then immediately realized.
“I’ll just say this. It doesn’t count once we’re outside. Figuring out that Star Stealer Sol’s situation is the top priority!”
Officer Luo looked somewhat apologetic towards Nol and said in a hearty voice, “Regardless of whether Star Stealer Sol caught us along the way, now we know that it’s very likely it has a way to bring people here—if it can bring us here, it can send us back, right?”
Nol didn’t mind the neighbors’ opinions; the mysteries about him weren’t just one or two, and even he found them strange.
“I will resolve the issue with Star Stealer Sol,” he said calmly. “Star Stealer Sol won’t just sit and wait for me to come knocking; it’s definitely going to cause more trouble, and then I’ll be relying on everyone here.”
After speaking, he looked towards Miss Lynn, the most adept at management among this group.
At that moment, Witch Lynn looked at them with a very strange gaze. Nol recalled that whenever they had crazily worked overtime only for the higher-ups to nonchalantly mess things up, he seemed to have seen that look too.
“So.”
With a rather ominous tone, Lynn said, “Mr. Xu, first you became the Demon King, becoming everyone’s target. Then you killed the Eternal Pope, created an undead dragon, and again became everyone’s target… You really love your job, don’t you?”
Always creating main quests, truly a creator.
Nol shrank his neck. “I was also investigating…”
“Forget it. I’m not really blaming you. It’s just that the workload has increased so much. I feel like I’m going to die from being overworked.”
Witch Lynn’s expression was bitter.
Nol’s gaze wandered. “You know, you can give yourself a raise. Or should I write you a few more upgrade documents? Do you have any weapons you’re comfortable with? I can provide the location of artifacts…”
He really couldn’t stay here, and if he sent other neighbors to investigate, they might very well lose their lives.
But he also had to admit that, as Paradise gradually developed, there was more and more to do—
The dog-headed beastmen had just moved in and needed time to integrate into life, requiring help.
With Fischer’s assistance, many neighbors had been sent back to the Lost Tower. Most of these neighbors suffered from psychological trauma, necessitating the succubi to urgently take up nursing roles, which required systematic training and instruction.
The nearby simple dungeons had been cleared, and to meet the monster neighbors’ leveling needs, the Lost Tower was gradually moving towards the center of the Black Forest. The surrounding environment was becoming increasingly dangerous, and Officer Luo’s patrols alone weren’t enough to cope, resulting in another expenditure on manpower.
…Not to mention the Tower’s cultivation, manufacturing, and daily management. Worst of all, the Paradise Corporation couldn’t just recruit outsiders at will.
These tasks might not be as dangerous as fighting, but just thinking about them gave Nol a headache.
He suspected Miss Lynn had tolerated it until now, partly out of conscience and mostly because she saw the benefit of him being able to travel to various unique places, which could help her find her sister.
But now, concern for her sister could no longer suppress Lynn’s desire for a holiday.
“I don’t want magic weapons. What would I do with them? Comb the dogs?”
Lynn said somberly. “I want to go out. I need a vacation. Make up any reason you want, but let’s pause Paradise’s external interactions for a while, except for trade. Anyway, players are currently focused on conquering the undead dragon, so not many are coming to Paradise.”
Nol had just relieved himself from the pressure of being a malicious leader when he suddenly realized something. “Conquering the undead dragon?”
What’s that about?
“See for yourself.” Lynn flicked her finger, and a magical screen floated in front of Nol.
[Regional Limited-Time Quest: The Curse of the Undead]
[Normal Completion: Expel the Undead Dragon Telistam wandering in the Claw Scar Mountains.]
[Perfect Completion: Kill the Undead Dragon Telistam wandering in the Claw Scar Mountains.]
[Rewards: A large amount of experience points [Normal]; Dragon Scale Armor Set (including headgear, clothing, gloves, shoes) ×1 [Normal]; Lost Dragon Heart Cloak [Perfect]; Lost Dragon Tooth Weapon [Perfect]]
[※Quest Introduction: Summoned by the Demon King, the evil dragon Telistam has fully awakened and lurks within the Claw Scar Mountains. Warriors blessed by the gods, please drive away this evil creature and bring peace to the Claw Scar Mountains.]
[※Battle Recommendation: Second class change full level; Number of people ≥100]
As Nol read each word, his expression turned exceptionally grim.
“Definitely Star Stealer Sol’s doing.” He spoke bluntly.
This task was exceedingly malicious.
Regardless of whether the dragon race would accept the undead dragon, the Claw Scar Mountains would become a major observation area for them; they wouldn’t sit idly by while it was attacked by humans.
Failure would certainly deal a heavy blow to the players.
If they managed to drive away or even kill the undead dragon… looking at these rewards, as long as the players dared to use them, they would immediately incur the undying enmity of the dragons. What followed would be a battle between players and the dragon race, a scenario Nol didn’t want to imagine.
“Xiao Luo, you just said something about Star Stealer Sol pulling players here. How come it turns around and sets up the players?” After hearing Nol’s explanation, Uncle Ma’s expression turned serious.
“It might be targeting the dragons.” Rosen mused, stroking his non-existent beard. “Players can’t die, and dragons wouldn’t stoop to torturing humans.”
Hearing this speculation, Teest scoffed.
Rosen’s face muscles twitched, but he didn’t pursue the powerhouse’s comment. “Mad Monk, do you have any other speculation?”
“The quest could be targeting players, the dragons, or my Nol—you know him. He wouldn’t stand by and watch this war unfold.”
Teest tapped his arm. “Star Stealer Sol has started moving its pieces.”
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