Rafael glanced at his wristwatch, puzzled about what was happening to his friends. Even though their names glowed, indicating they were online, the light was not the usual soft white. If they were engaged in a special quest that required temporary communication disconnection, there would be a letter "Q" after their names. Instead, their names were in dark purple hue, with a "Q" next to their names.

"What kind of quest have they stumbled into? The color of their names gives me chills,"

Rafael muttered to himself. He had been trying to contact Siegfried and Draco for a while, but to no avail.

"Deputy Leader, our scouts at the Southern Sea Abyss report that the Doom Star Guild has found the entrance to the tomb, but it's sealed. They're currently trying to break through the collapsed rocks blocking the entrance!"

A guild member reported the current situation to Rafael, who was acting as guild leader in Siegfried's absence.

"Hmm! Tell our people to watch from a distance. If the Doom Star Guild doesn't mind others following, have them infiltrate as well. I'd like to know what's waiting inside the treasure cave. Who knows, we might find one ourselves in the future, right?"

Rafael responded cheerfully.

"I think we should start searching for the pirate king's hidden tomb ourselves. Then, our guild wouldn't be bullied by the big guilds so much,"

the man suggested.

"I've thought about that too, Ray. Perhaps our guild leader's current adventure might lead them to such a treasure cave. After all, he's traveling with a lucky charm,"

Rafael chuckled.

"Lucky charm?"

Ray repeated, confused.

"Hehehe, it's Chang Long. She's the real deal. The armor I got from the egg, the bracelet, the title of Guardian of the Fairy Forest, and my rapid level increase—all thanks to following her,"

Rafael explained, pointing to the silver armor with a large white cross on the chest, proudly displayed in his private room.

"Really! I can't believe someone... so quiet and unassuming could be so lucky,"

Ray exclaimed, astonished.

"That's because she doesn't show off. But if you ever see her fight, you'll feel chills down your spine!"

Rafael said seriously.

"Is she really that good!"

Ray was shocked by Rafael's serious tone, not expecting the unassuming girl to be so skilled.

"By the way, did you look into that story in the Reaper's Whisperer newspaper?"

Rafael changed the topic.

"It seems to be true. The Dark Horse Guild has already sent scouts to check the area. There have even been some skirmishes with our people!"

Ray reported with concern.

"I see. Tell our people not to provoke them openly. Wait until I can contact our guild leader, then we'll make a plan," Rafael advised.

"Is the guild leader offline?"

"No, he's on a quest, but it's a strange one. Their names should be white but they're a creepy purple-black,"

Rafael replied.

"Purple-black... Could it be that the Guild Leader has entered a special dimension, the Land of the Dead!"

Ray exclaimed in surprise, making Rafael turn to him with interest.

"A special dimension? The Land of the Dead?"

Rafael repeated.

"Yes, it's one of the game's mysteries. Few have encountered it. A friend of mine once told me that if you travel at night during a new moon, whether by land or sea, you'll encounter a large black ship with undead crew members. Then you'll be taken to the Land of the Dead,"

Ray recounted with a fearful expression.

"And then what? Is that all your friend told you?"

Rafael pressed when Ray fell silent.

"He said that upon reaching the island called the Land of the Dead, they received a quest to find living people and someone who would act as their guide. They also had to complete the quest before running out of supplies."

"Did your friend succeed?"

"No, they couldn't find any living people, and their supplies ran out. They all died before they could leave the special dimension. It was a really horrifying story; it took him a long time to muster the courage to tell me about it!"

Ray spoke with a shiver.

"If Siegfried is with Chang Long, I don't think they'll have to worry about food... If they really are in that special dimension, I believe they'll complete the quest and return safely!"

Rafael said confidently.

"You seem very sure, Deputy Leader,"

Ray remarked, surprised.

"More than confident. Now, let's go for a walk. I want to see the Dark Horse Guild members who are causing trouble in our territory,"

Rafael said, leading the way out of his private room.

"Yes, sir!"

Ray responded, quickly following Rafael.

After resting and gathering their courage, Chang Long's group walked through the streets of the city of the dead, which was eerily quiet and gloomy. Davy-chan and Hisa-chan had to stay within fifty meters of Chang Long as before. They searched every alley for signs of living people, but no matter how hard they looked, they found nothing.

"Weren't you supposed to be able to sense living people easily with your mind!"

Chang Long asked Davy-chan, who had boasted about his abilities, with a frustrated expression.

"I am using it, but it's strange. We've walked all over, yet we haven't found any signs of the living,"

Davy-chan replied, frowning.

"So, what now? We've almost covered the entire area. I hope the others that spread out are having better luck finding Kearick,"

Chang Long said, feeling disheartened. She had not expected finding the twelve living people to be this difficult.

"Maybe the dead know we're here to rescue the living and have hidden them!"

Kimhant asked, sticking close to Chang Long.

"I sense hostile intent..."

Hisa-chan said, his face filled with worry.

"From where!"

Kitsune asked seriously.

"From the dead... all of them!"

Hisa-chan answered, making Kimhant and Chang Long shiver.

"I suspected as much... Maybe we should check the outskirts of the city. We might find the living there!"

Kitsune suggested, noticing the worsening atmosphere in the city.

"Sounds good. Kimhant, would you stop taking pictures for a moment!"

Chang Long complained, annoyed, as she noticed Kimhant still snapping photos non-stop.

"But the homes of the dead are so cool. They're like giant tombstones with doors,"

Kimhant replied, looking sheepish.

"Do you want to sleep in one of them?"

Chang Long asked sharply.

"Even though they're fascinating, I definitely don't want to sleep in one!"

Kimhant quickly shook his head in denial.

"Let's go!"

Davy-chan led the way out of the city. Before leaving, Chang Long scanned the area one last time to make sure she was not missing anything. Her eyes caught sight of something that looked like a hidden passage on the street in a nearby deserted alley.

"Wait, Davy-chan!"

Chang Long called out softly.

"What is it?"

Davy-chan turned back to ask.

"I want to rest for a bit. We've been walking for a long time; aren't you tired?"

Chang Long said, keeping her face neutral and not showing any signs of suspicion because a few dead were always passing by the area.

"Let's rest over there so we don't block anyone's way,"

Hisa-chan suggested, pointing to the alley Chang Long had noticed. He winked at his master, who smiled slightly, pleased.

"Good idea! I'll lay out a mat for us to sit on,"

Kitsune, understanding without needing further explanation, hurriedly laid out a mat near the hidden passage.

"So, can I keep taking pictures?" Kimhant asked, oblivious to the real reason behind the rest stop.

"Do what you want,"

Chang Long rolled her eyes and sat down on the mat Kitsune had prepared.

Meanwhile, Siegfried and Peach Blossom were searching the northern part of the city for Kearick. They had tasked Chang Long and her followers with finding the twelve living people. Despite thoroughly searching every corner, they still had not found anyone named Kearick.

"The system hasn't given us any clues. How are we supposed to find him!"

Peach Blossom shouted in frustration. No matter how carefully they searched, they could not find Kearick.

"Calm down, Peach Blossom. Don't forget we're being watched!"

Siegfried scolded her softly.

"I should've gone with Master Chang. Kimhant is useless and won't be able to help her!"

Peach Blossom grumbled, kicking the ground in frustration.

"You should focus on your task. Do you want to disappoint Chang Long by failing to find Kearick? She might even get angry with you,"

Siegfried threathened.

"Why would Master Chang be mad at me? Oliang, Wet Trash Can, Draco, Valentine, and Aden are all looking for Kearick too!"

Peach Blossom argued.

"Do you want to be the one who finds him and gets praised by Chang Long, or do you want the others to find him and get the praise?"

Siegfried's motivational tactic seemed to work as Peach Blossom began to imagine herself being praised by Chang Long for finding Kearick and completing the quest.

"Hehehe, with such a great achievement, Master Chang will definitely propose to me,"

Peach Blossom muttered to herself, her eyes dreamy as she envisioned Chang Long praising her and then kneeling to propose.

"Don't get ahead of yourself... Aren't you giving up on finding Kearick?"

Siegfried shook his head at his sister's imagination but continued to encourage her.

"Not at all! Hey, Siegfried, stop slacking off! If you walk that slowly, how will we find Kearick today!"

Peach Blossom quickened her pace, her enthusiasm renewed tenfold.

"What a complete turnaround..."

Siegfried muttered under his breath, amused, as he followed his sister.

"Look!"

Valentine pointed to a man sitting by an old well out to Aden. He wore only tattered pants, was dirty and disheveled, and kept looking around nervously as if he did not want to be seen.

"Who is that!"

Aden whispered uncertainly. The man's suspicious behavior and constant glancing around made him seem out of place.

"I don't know, but he doesn't look quite like the dead,"

Valentine replied. Despite the man's pale skin and gaunt frame, he was not just skin and bones like the other dead in the Land of the Dead. More importantly, he had normal eyes, unlike the hollow, empty eyes of the dead in the city.

"Should we go talk to him?"

Aden suggested.

"Yes, I think we should,"

Valentine agreed. They approached the man quietly, trying not to startle him into fleeing.

"Hello!"

Aden greeted him. The man jumped up, ready to run, but Valentine anticipated this and blocked his escape route.

"What... what do you want from me? I'm dead just like you. It's not my fault that I look different from you. I don't know when our master disappeared!"

The man blurted out in a panic, not even opening his eyes to see who had spoken to him.

"I'm not the dead!"

Aden quickly said, trying to calm him down.

"Really?"

The man asked, still not opening his eyes.

"Yes, we came on a black ship and are trying to find a way out of here,"

Hearing Aden's explanation, the man cautiously opened his eyes, sighed in relief upon seeing that Aden was not a resident of the city. After adjusting his mood, he led them into the nearby bushes to talk without being seen by the townspeople.

"You came with Tautus' ship?"

The man asked.

"Tautus?"

Valentine repeated.

"The black ship! It's strange that you're still wandering around freely. They never let humans they bring here roam the city,"

the man explained, picking his nose with his pinky.

"What do you mean?"

Aden asked, intrigued, as he too had many suspicions about the dead.

"It happened a long time ago. A human got lost and wandered into our land. Oh! Back then, we didn't look like we do now, all decrepit and skeletal. I was more like me, and not as ragged as I am right now!"

"A human wandered in? I thought the only way to enter this land was by the black ship?"

Valentine questioned, puzzled.

"I said it was a long time ago! That human was gravely injured, on the verge of death. But our master had mercy and healed him. He even taught him some of his skills. But when the day came for that human to leave, he vanished along with our master and his sword. Without our ruler, the Land of the Dead fell into decay..."

"The ruler disappeared with the human?" Aden asked.

"Ah... We believe so. So, we built the ship to search for the human we believed kidnapped our ruler. But as time passed, the quest changed. From finding the ruler, it became about luring lost humans to the Land of the Dead and imprisoning them until they died,"

the man explained sorrowfully.

"Why haven't you changed like the others?"

Valentine asked, remembering that the man claimed to also be the dead.

"Because I am one of the castle guardians. There were four of us. Three went out to search for our ruler and never returned. I stayed to guard something our master left behind. But I lost my powers. I think the other three did as well, which is why they couldn't return."

"What are you guarding?"

Valentine asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. She thought it might be a valuable treasure or a rare item.

-----

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