Game of the World Tree

A cluster of mercenaries gathered around several elves who were bound with anti-magic ropes, as their eyes gleam with excitement as they meticulously counted their exact numbers.

“One, two, three… fifty-seven, fifty-eight…”

“Fifty-eight! We actually captured fifty-eight elves in this operation!”

“They’re all young elves too! With most of them being female!”

“Haha! We’re going to make a fortune! Even if we split it equally, each of us can still earn hundreds of gold coins!”

“Captain, you’re so amazing! I’ve never seen so many elves in my life!”

The mercenaries exclaimed with excitement.

Crocodile took a sip of water that was handed to him by a mercenary, then proudly said,

“When have I, as your captain, ever failed to impress anyone?”

He had risen from a mere commoner to a renowned Silver-ranked Swordmaster, and had even gathered a thousand mercenaries under his command.

Even nobles had to show him respect!

After saying that, a hint of regret appeared on Crocodile’s face.

“It’s such a shame that the Dragon returned so soon. Otherwise, we could have captured even more.”

“…Even more?”

“Yes, at least a few hundred more!”

Crocodile sighed lamentingly.

Hearing their captain’s remarks, the mercenaries who hadn’t participated in the operation took a sharp breath.

“Hundreds of elves? Holy Eternal Lord! Where did that Dragon find so many elves, and all of them are so young too!”

“Who knows…maybe it enslaved all the remaining elves in this forest?”

Crocodile shook his head.

That was the only explanation he could offer to his subordinates.

However, even though this operation had gone smoothly, Crocodile couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

Thinking back to the teleportation circlesl used by those elves and looking at their captives who were curiously and excitedly observing them, Crocodile couldn’t help but feel that something was off…

If he had to put it into words, these captured elves were displaying a behavior that was quite different from his expectations.

Crocodile assumed that they would be afraid, angry, or even despair, and based upon his years of experience as a mercenary, he had worried that some of them might choose to commit suicide out of stubbornness.

But the reality was vastly different.

These dozens of captured elves were cooperating exceptionally well, as if they were strolling through their own garden. Their eyes were bright and curious, but strangely enough, there was no sign of nervousness nor fear at all.

What a strange group of individuals! Didn’t they know what fate they were about to face?

Crocodile was puzzled.

However, now that he thought about it, the fact that the Black Dragon could gather hundreds of young elves in the first place was already quite strange…

After pondering for a while, Crocodile couldn’t figure it out and decided not to dwell on it.

Sure, he felt uneasy, but perhaps it was because the whole plan had gone too smoothly?

But these captured elves were authentic!

He had used his Appraisal Skill, and these captives were indeed very real elves!

Now that their magical powers were sealed by the Anti-Magic Ropes, what tricks could they possibly do anyway in this situation?

However… this haul was too big.

To avoid any complications, he should hurry and return with his men as quickly as possible.

With that in mind, Crocodile took another sip of water and then gestured his hands to disperse the mercenaries ogling the captives.

“Alright you idiots, disperse! Keep an eye on these elves! No one is allowed to touch them! Just one of their fingers is worth a year’s worth of your wages!”

“Pack up your things. We’re leaving tonight to return back to the Empire’s border!”

After Crocodile gave the order, the fifty-eight captured players, including Little Salty Cat, were put under meticulous supervision.

They obediently followed the mercenaries’ orders while curiously inspecting the mercenaries’ camp.

On the surface, they seemed to be impressed by the sheer number of mercenaries, but in reality, the players were getting excited…

Within the game’s discussion channel.

Little Salty Cat formed a temporary party consisting of the fifty-eight players who had been captured by these human mercenaries.

Currently the party’s chatroom was already flooded with lots of messages.

-Mercenaries! These are human mercenaries!

-There’s so many of them! Could this be a hidden quest?

-Very likely! Just now, I overheard their conversation, and it seems like they were originally going after Meryer, but they ended up capturing us instead.

-They were really after Meryer? Could it be a follow up to what happened after Meryer went to a human territory?

-Who knows, but… it seems like they’re treating us like treasures.

-Of course, they’d treat us like treasures! You might not know it, seeing as you’re a third beta-player, but an elf in the black market is worth at least a thousand gold coins! And if you’re a female, then your value can even double!

-Why do you know so much about this?

-Lmao, when the devs first introduced the underground map, I sold myself twice to a slaver and made over three thousand gold coins! It’s incredible!

-What the hell?! You can sell yourself to slavery? That’s awesome! But…are these gold coins even useful?

-Of course! One gold coin is worth a hundred silver coins. That’s at least three hundred thousand silver coins! This amount is enough to commission a dwarven blacksmith to forge you thirty sets of blue-class equipment! In terms of contribution points, that’s roughly sixty thousand! At that time, resurrection were based on how much perfect revival you had, so dying twice would only cost two thousand contribution points.”

-Nice! Two thousand CP for sixty thousand gold! Is this a game exploit?

-Not necessarily. I sold myself twice, and the dwarf slaver went bankrupt afterwards. Also, the penalties for dying now are more severe since you need to use revive coins instead…¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

-(°ロ°)

-Don’t underestimate your personal worth in the game! To sum it up, these mercenaries treating us like treasures is quite normal. According to the dark dwarves, bounty hunters who operate underground and make over thirty gold coins a year are considered