NOVEL NEXT Ch. 16
Chapter 16. Team Up
After taking a few steps closer, Chen Zixuan could faintly make out five figures lurking behind a patch of shrubbery about a dozen meters away—three men and two women.
Judging by their appearance, they were all players, and the way they coordinated suggested they were friends in real life.
Five in a row at an internet cafe, never won a match.
Chen Zixuan suddenly thought maliciously.
Just as Chen Zixuan was slowly approaching, a young man behind the bushes suddenly turned his head, staring fixedly in Chen Zixuan's direction and nervously shouting, "Who? Who's there?!"
Hearing the boy's warning, the others quickly took out their weapons, preparing for battle.
"Wait, I'm a player too."
A delicate girl's voice came from behind a big tree.
Then, a figure entirely shrouded in a black cloak slowly emerged from behind the tree.
To show he meant no harm, Chen Zixuan purposely stowed his weapon and raised his empty, fair little hand.
Hearing Chen Zixuan's words, the other players immediately breathed sighs of relief and put down their weapons as well.
Anyway, as long as it wasn't a monster, it was fine. Their levels were too low; just one surprise attack could mean a total wipe.
What could they do? This game was just too hard...
Despite half a day since the server opened, out of the five, only that teenage boy had barely managed to reach level 2.
"Are you by yourself? If you have nowhere to grind levels, join us! We just accepted a hidden quest and are still short a member."
The boy who spoke walked up, flashed a bright smile, and said to Chen Zixuan.
Hmm, he has real leadership qualities...
Chen Zixuan quietly made a note in his heart.
It seemed this young man was the captain of this five-player squad.
"I..."
Chen Zixuan had just opened his mouth when a girl wielding a staff hesitated and said, "Wait a minute... before teaming up, shouldn't that thing be taken off?"
The thing she referred to was the 【Nightcloak】 Chen Zixuan was currently wearing.
Chen Zixuan glanced at the mage girl—she looked about eighteen or nineteen, a little taller than Chen Zixuan's current form, sporting shoulder-length, medium black hair.
Her looks were quite fetching, a type to attract admirers.
"Xuetong, don't say that, what gear someone wears is their choice."
Seeing Chen Zixuan hesitate, the boy quickly turned to persuade the mage girl.
Then he turned back and smiled at Chen Zixuan.
"Don't mind her; Xuetong doesn't mean any harm. It's just that we were recently driven out of a grinding spot by other players, which is why we came here."
"No worries, I understand."
After considering a moment, Chen Zixuan decided to gently lift off the hood.
She raised her head and reached behind her neck, shaking her long silver hair that fell in two streams down either side.
Upon seeing the girl before them, ethereal beyond compare, the young man and the mage girl were instantly dumbfounded.
Except for Chen Zixuan herself, everyone present stood frozen in shock.
"Wow! What a cute little sister! Are you playing this game all by yourself?"
Only the priest girl in the group squealed with excitement, rushed over, and wrapped Chen Zixuan in a hug, kissing and nuzzling her face.
Chen Zixuan blushed deeply, wanting to struggle but not daring to. This was her first time in such close contact with a female, and she hadn't expected it to be under these circumstances.
This probably counts as... as sexual harassment... right?
Watching the slightly racy scene in front of him, the young man's face flushed, and he hurriedly took two steps back, turning his gaze away.
Damn... looking at the two girls before him, he didn't even know which one to envy more...
After much fooling around, the priest girl reluctantly let go of Chen Zixuan, and the previously awkward atmosphere became harmonious thanks to this little drama.
"Taozhi, this kind of thing can make others uncomfortable."
The young man chided the priest girl, coming across as quite the decent person.
"Hmph."
The priest girl, called Taozhi, shot the young man a disdainful glance, then looked at Chen Zixuan with sparkling eyes.
"Little sister, big sis is a good person. Want me to take you leveling?"
"I..."
Chen Zixuan rubbed her burning cheeks, just about to politely refuse, when a party invitation appeared.
"System message: Player 【Taozhi】 has invited you to join her party. Current party size: 5 members."
Chen Zixuan hesitated for a moment, but in the end accepted the girl's team invitation.
She had no idea how to get back to the main city; wandering through the forest alone would waste a lot of time. These players clearly knew the way home—she could just follow them back.
"System message: Player 【Cecilia】 has joined the party!"
With a chime, the other four party members' expressions froze again.
Especially the young man, who wore a look of utter disbelief.
Only the priest girl who had just harassed Chen Zixuan continued to merrily pat her shoulder, promising with utter conviction:
"Lia, you're new, right! Don't worry, even though big sis is also a newbie, I swear I'll protect you!"
Chen Zixuan gave a helpless smile—judging by the others' reactions, her identity was probably exposed.
She couldn't help but think this priest girl was a bit airheaded. You really did get all kinds of people in games—though, truth be told, it made things pretty lively.
The young man paused for a moment, then quickly composed himself. He didn't rush to expose Chen Zixuan's identity but instead spoke up, "Alright, let's all introduce ourselves first."
With that, he raised his sword with a smile. "My handle is 【Xiaocang Wei Number One Under Heaven】—you can just call me Xiaocang Wei. Warrior class, just reached level 2."
"Xuetong, mage class, still level 1."
The second to introduce herself was the mage girl from earlier. She shot Chen Zixuan an apologetic look.
The silver-haired girl smiled and shook her head, showing there were no hard feelings.
"【Just a Salted Fish】—that's my ID, level 1 Sharpshooter. Big boss, just call me Salted Fish."
A skinny young man smiled shyly, showing off his bow to Chen Zixuan.
The last two were a tall male player and the somewhat dense priest girl.
The male player went by Old Bai, carried a huge wooden shield, and was a Paladin. The priest girl's full in-game name was 【Taozhi Not Peach Juice】, both of them, like the others, were level 1.
As far as Chen Zixuan could see, this five-person party had a solid lineup—tank, healer, both physical and magic DPS, capable of both ranged and melee fighting.
The only issue: their equipment was terrible. Except for the mage girl with a blue ring, even the leader's gear was pitiful, and the weapons were all standard newbie stuff.
Noticing that the team lacked an assassin, the silver-haired girl blinked and smiled shyly, "Cecilia, assassin class. As for level... just reached 4."
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】