MoP: Ch. 163

---Third POV---

NineTails' eyes widened.

"Me?"

"Yes, you." Hedgehog nodded firmly.

According to the battle meeting: Roads would be blocked by wasteland players coordinating with refugees to contain information spread.

The Air Force One Family controlled civilian opinion inside the city, preventing excessive resistance that could complicate the siege.

Divine Scam Syndicate handled logistics.

Fire-Type Supreme and Lucky Stars investigated the underground city and planned the initial assault.

Intelligence gathering fell mostly to the Lucky Stars team.

Thanks to Garble's connections, they had solid intel on White Dove's sirens and the Scarlet Casino.

But the auction house still lacked an inside contact.

Hedgehog laid out the situation.

"White Dove's connected to Nary Town's mayor. Our people have seen sirens entering and leaving the underground city near the mayor's residence multiple times."

"Because of their scent, the friendly siren probably isn't with the mayor. She's most likely hidden inside one of the three major auction houses."

"We need someone to infiltrate, map the interior, and pinpoint the siren's exact location."

"The simplest entry method is disguising yourself as a slave for auction."

"Red fox beastmen are apparently in high demand right now. If you participate, the success rate shoots way up."

NineTails processed the information carefully.

"But isn't our goal to provoke conflict between White Dove and Nary Town? Can't we just leak that sirens are in the auction house and let them investigate?"

Given how desperately White Dove's guild searched for their missing members, simply spreading rumors about sirens waiting for auction would definitely bait them in.

No complicated tricks necessary.

Hedgehog shook his head.

"You're underestimating White Dove's strength. They sent seven sirens total, and even the weakest is a level 40 mage specializing in close-combat magic. If the two sides clash directly, the mayor will almost certainly cave and hand over our siren."

"The only way to make him stand firm is ensuring White Dove's forces aren't all present when the secret gets exposed."

"That way, those calculating bastards will see a chance at victory. Only then will they risk everything and use all their trump cards to take White Dove down piece by piece."

The cost would be brutal, but the potential profit of seven enslaved sirens was worth gambling on.

"Besides, you really think just telling them will work? They'll suspect a third party immediately."

Understanding clicked into place. NineTails' excitement grew.

"So what I need to do is infiltrate the auction house, stir up the slaves into rebelling, create enough commotion to attract outside attention, and indirectly expose the sirens' presence. That way, the information leak appears coincidental, or caused by the slaves themselves!"

Now Hedgehog looked shocked.

"You actually know how to pull off operations like that?"

NineTails blinked. "Is it really that complicated?"

Realizing she was just theorizing, Hedgehog's brief excitement deflated.

The first-tier players had really skewed his expectations by dumping all their skill points into weird specializations.

"No, you just need to map the auction house interior. Leave everything else to us."

"The three major auction houses have stood in Nary Town this long because they're not easy to escape from."

Her fantasy punctured, NineTails rubbed her nose sheepishly.

"Oh, I see..."

Maybe she'd overestimated her importance to the mission.

Hedgehog nodded again.

"We've already planned for possible complications. You just need to stay inside a few days, nothing more."

The game's mapping function was incredibly powerful.

Even if a player was unconscious or had a sack over their head during transport, the system could still scan the surrounding environment and generate a map.

All NineTails had to do was move around while conscious, look around carefully, and map the areas slaves could access.

The visitor routes would be handled by other players.

To ensure NineTails could handle the assignment, Hedgehog broke down the plan into digestible pieces.

Between explanations, he sighed.

"Originally, LootGoblin would've been perfect for this. He learned some cosmetic potion recipe, boosted his looks several levels, and would've been a real hit with rich women. But he absolutely refused to cooperate, so we had to find someone else."

Without NineTails, they'd have to pick from human players. But infiltrating that way had basically zero chance of success.

High-end auction houses never accepted ordinary human slaves. Even having a mage's credentials wouldn't get them through the door.

NineTails felt embarrassed listening.

"What a shame... Any other things I should keep in mind?"

"You got all that?" Hedgehog asked.

Something about his tone felt ominous. NineTails hesitated but still nodded.

"Perfect!" Hedgehog clapped his hands and stood. "Then let's head out right now!"

"Wait, what?!"

NineTails' fox ears perked straight up. Looking down at her current outfit, she didn't know what to do with her hands.

"I don't need to prepare anything else? Like changing clothes..."

"Not at all."

Hedgehog flashed a grin that looked especially sinister in NineTails' eyes.

He was completely satisfied with her appearance.

"Your wounds, dark circles, and ragged clothes already make you look exactly like a captured beastman. Time to move. You can even sleep in the cage during transport."

He clapped his hands. Four players emerged from the tightly shut room nearby.

They carried several thick iron chains and a large iron cage.

"According to Cobb, there's a black market merchant behind this street who works with the auction houses. In about an hour, you'll be in the underground city. Quick and efficient."

NineTails stared. "That's way too efficient!"

"Time's tight and the mission's urgent. You wouldn't want to miss the big group shot for the promotional video afterward, would you?"

Hedgehog tested the sturdiness of the iron chains. For authenticity, the restraint props had to be top quality.

"Hold on tight. The undercover job starts now."

NineTails took a step back. Her eyes shifted from shock and resistance to reluctant acceptance.

Finally, she held up one finger.

"I have one condition. Tie me up after I log out."

No way was she personally experiencing bondage play.

Absolutely not.

Hedgehog agreed cheerfully.

"Got it. See you in three days."

---

In the the Wolcen Mountains, piercing cold wind carried snow and ice shards across the expanse.

A vast skeletal army suddenly appeared in the lower right of the scene.

They marched in neat formation toward the mountain peak, bones clattering together with eerie sounds.

At the very front was a black-and-white orb, steady even in the violent gale.

A towering ice-blue yeti, several meters tall, suddenly leapt from beneath the snow, lunging toward the sleigh cart in the center of the skeletal army.

It was instantly swarmed and buried beneath countless skeletal soldiers.

The snow monster thrashed like a caterpillar beset by ants, struggling desperately for a few seconds. Then came the sound of bones snapping, followed by a spreading stain of deep red.

Viktor stored the dying snow monster in his inventory and muttered, "Another level five monster. We're already halfway up the mountain. Why are they still just low-level creatures?"

Of course, in the outside world, a level five monster would be enough to decide a city's fate.

But this was Wolcen Mountain!

Six hundred years ago, level five monsters already appeared here.

After hundreds of years, how could nothing have changed?

To prepare for high-level monsters suddenly appearing, he had nearly excavated the entire snowy path, unearthing all usable bones.

From these he'd built this undead army.

Looking at it now, maybe he was overreacting?

He raised his head toward the clouds and mist looming just above. That hazy existence pressed visibility down to almost nothing.

Just watching the swirling, rolling mist was enough to make his imagination conjure countless monsters moving within.

"Up ahead is the cloud layer... Could the dangerous monsters all be concentrated in there?"

He waved his arm.

The skeletal undead gathered tightly around him.

Beast bones and human bones jostled together, producing chilling sounds.

"Tighten formation! Wedge formation, advance!"

---

Game time passed quickly.

By the second day, hardcore players had already taken care of most planned tasks.

Only one step remained: sparking conflict between White Dove and Nary Town.

Scarlet Casino.

Once again, familiar candlelight dinner hour.

As everyone knew, if you had romance every day, it stopped being romantic.

Garble numbly ate a steak of unknown meat.

He felt like he'd already exhausted all the candlelight dinners he could possibly have in his lifetime within just these few days of gaming.

"Are you unhappy?" Hannah across from him asked.

Alarm bells blared in Garble's head.

"How could I be unhappy? The moment I stepped into this private room and saw this candlelight dinner, happiness struck me like lightning! This isn't just a meal, it's an artwork you've carefully crafted with love and devotion. The candlelight doesn't just illuminate the room, it illuminates my heart, and you are the brightest light of all."

After blurting this out in one breath, he added the final touch, "My dear Hannah."

That name at the end clearly pleased her more than all the flowery compliments before.

Hannah propped her cheek with one hand and smiled sweetly.

"You always know what to say. You're so practiced at this. Do you say these things to other sirens too?"

"No, never. These are my true feelings. When it's heartfelt, the words just flow naturally!"

Garble gazed back at her with deep affection.

This reply was flawless, especially considering he hadn't been zapped for almost half an hour now.

The siren was coaxed until her smile curved uncontrollably.

Genuine love shone in her eyes, as though he was her whole world.

"I believe you."

"I have one good piece of news and one bad piece of news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Garble hesitated a moment. "The bad news?"

Hannah sighed softly.

"Selina found the target of our current mission in Letscher City, in the Principality of Elise. Most likely, we'll be leaving tomorrow morning."

Garble blinked. "Then what's the bad news?"

"...Hm?"

"I mean, that was the bad news. So what's the good news?"

The suspicion on the siren's face melted instantly, and she announced happily:

"I've decided to leave the White Dove Ensemble and stay here in Nary Town with you! Surprised?"

Garble's eye twitched violently.

Surprised? More like horrified!

"Aren't you afraid headquarters will send people after you? Living in human society is inconvenient for sirens, isn't it? Otherwise, we wouldn't have cut ties with human kingdoms in the first place."

At that, the smile on her face faded noticeably.

"Any siren sent here is already considered dead by headquarters. No one will come looking for me."

"And besides..."

She lifted her head, cupping Garble's face with a radiant smile.

"The most beautiful ending for a siren is being with the one she loves. I've already found you. Why would I need to keep serving the Goddess of Love?"

Garble's face was squished, but he could only endure without resisting.

"Your views on faith are really... progressive."

These past days, besides doing the main quest, they'd also been trying to recruit NPCs.

Making a human NPC abandon their established faith was harder than finding a unicorn.

Maybe it was the confidence of magical races?

In human eyes, all their magical talents, every step of growth, came from the gods they worshiped.

Faith for humans was as essential as breathing.

But for beings born at level 30+ in magic, for whom leveling up was easier than eating, faith was purely a spiritual need.

Gratitude to the creator god, asking the Goddess of Love for help finding a partner...

Switching faiths was something they could casually declare.

The gods really were unfair to humans.

Garble sighed inwardly.

Still, their plan could finally begin.

---

Back in his empty bedroom, Werner, better known as Garble, immediately opened the forum and switched to a locked private thread.

[The sirens are leaving tomorrow morning. How's everyone's deployment looking?]

A flood of replies appeared instantly, as though everyone had been waiting.

[Relax, I've already handled the refugees on both main roads!]

[Good morning! Don't worry, when the fighting starts, no civilians will be running out to watch!]

[+1. The catapults are positioned outside the city. Been outsmarting patrol soldiers all night, I'm exhausted!]

[Logistics are set. As long as you don't scatter too far, we can rescue everyone!]

[Located level 80+ Magus. Better send two sirens to keep him busy. Here's the location.]

[Hurry up! My blade's getting restless!]

[Intel distribution chain is complete. When the two sides clash, their power balance will be perfectly even!]

Werner nodded as he read.

Early-stage deployment, mid-stage offensive, late-stage cleanup. Everything was in place.

Only one thing remained.

[What about the rescue plan? The underground city will definitely become the war's focal point. We need to extract our allied siren with unknown injuries early.]

NineTails cautiously chimed in:

[Uh... we've confirmed the siren's location, but the guards there are tight. Haven't found a way in yet...]

He frowned at that unusually uncertain message and let out a sigh.

"Still no way in, huh?"

But this was within expectations.

The defenses for fire foxes and sirens were definitely on different levels.

At least they'd completed the auction house map, found siren-related items, and confirmed the siren's prison location.

That was already beyond expectations.

He wouldn't demand more.

He decisively typed:

[No problem. When the time comes, we'll lure White Dove's people inside. We can rescue her in the chaos!]

With the help of Cobb and days of reconnaissance, players were now very familiar with the secret exits of the three major auction houses.

Rescuing someone wouldn't be too difficult.

If things went wrong...

Well, they'd just kill the bandits or assassins out of spite.

After all, the siren representative had already said she was willing to accept any outcome.