Chapter 1423 - 1419: Successfully Triggered a Hidden Quest
After Chloe Winston quit the game, she saw Wendy Starling and Desmond Wood both crowding over.
"How is it, Chloe, did you find anything?" Desmond asked anxiously.
Chloe nodded, took the water Wendy handed her, drank a mouthful, and said hoarsely, "I just entered the Arena and fought a round as a Gladiator. This kind of holographic projection puts you right in the middle of it. It’s terrifying."
"Exactly. I went into the Arena before too, couldn’t last two rounds before I died. I still have PTSD from it." Wendy had only done one Gladiator match before resting the whole time, not daring to try a second one. She clenched her teeth and said, "How does an amusement park even dare to open this kind of project to the public?"
"What we’re doing should be a high-difficulty dungeon." Chloe’s calves still felt like they were being torn apart, yet there wasn’t a single scratch on her body; everything she’d gone through in the Arena had only left marks on her sensory nerves.
"I went into the Arena in District One. A thousand people, top score 6 points. I just now scraped together 2 points, ranked 145." Since Desmond and Wendy were teammates she trusted, Chloe didn’t hide anything and said all her thoughts, "If I’m not wrong, this run is mainly about team cooperation. On the train we took here, there were eight carvings, each depicting some interesting yet abrupt scenes—basically, a slave’s child overthrowing the rulers. Every player who comes to this level gets turned into a Gladiator by the system and fights to accumulate points. But what are these points actually for? There’s no explanation!
Even weirder, the system wipes all Arena points clean every day. In a way, that gives latecomers a fair shot. The NPCs are limited to three fights a day, but we players aren’t. All of this is hinting to us: as long as you keep fighting hard, you can climb to the top of the leaderboard. Charles Taylor’s speculation was right; we have to become the bosses of the Arena, and maybe only then can we unlock the quest clues."
Chloe hadn’t forgotten that Constantine Stewart had unlocked a Slave Master identity with just one move, while Charles Taylor and Wendy had obediently verified their identities when they came in and both became slaves. It showed that many of the clues in this dungeon had to be unlocked by themselves.
Desmond was already at a loss for words. He had always been the type with more brawn than brains, and now he could only mumble awkwardly, "Chloe, you’ve gotta be a straight‑A student, right."
Wendy was also visibly excited. She grabbed Chloe’s hand and said, "Chloe, with you here, we’re definitely clearing this level."
Chloe was almost choked by her drink under their two little wolf‑dog‑like gazes of pure worship. Her cheeks flushed as she said, "I’m just guessing. Honestly, the key to clearing this dungeon lies with Constantine Stewart. He’s already successfully infiltrated. If nothing goes wrong, we’ll need to coordinate with him from inside and out to pass this level."
"I don’t care. The moment you all showed up, I instantly felt like I was saved." Wendy said excitedly.
"Chloe, when did you get here?" As he spoke, Charles Taylor had already exited the game. His face was a little pale, but seeing Chloe, he asked with a hint of pleasant surprise.
Desmond stepped forward to help him sit up, then eagerly brought him food and water while chattering on about everything that had just happened.
When Charles learned that Constantine Stewart had actually unlocked a Slave Master identity and infiltrated the nobility, he suddenly didn’t know whether to be jealous or happy.
"Mr. Taylor, rest for a bit first. We might have to team up and hit the Arena in a while." Chloe smiled gently, revealing her sweet dimples.
This was the first time they’d met after signing their contract lover agreement. Thinking about how Charles Taylor was actually willing to help her filled her heart completely with gratitude, and she unconsciously became a little gentler toward him.
"Let’s go too. We need to become the bosses of District One’s Arena as soon as possible, so we can see whether it’ll unlock new clues." Desmond and Wendy exchanged a look; both wanted to contribute.
"Sounds good. If we run into beasts, we’ll fight together. If we’re unlucky and end up as opponents, then whoever has the lower points just dies. With good luck, we only need three fights to take the top spot on the leaderboard." Chloe nodded.
After Charles rested for a bit, the four of them entered the District One Arena together. They were very lucky the first time—it was a beast fight. The four of them were placed in the same match and killed the beasts together, each taking varying degrees of injury.
The second round was also lucky: a duel between two. Chloe was matched against Desmond. Charles Taylor and Wendy were sent to the Beast Arena.
Chloe currently had the highest points. When dueling Desmond, he directly threw the match and chose death. In fact, after seeing how vicious Chloe had been when killing beasts, Desmond felt it was better to just go and "die like a dog."
Chloe’s points shot up rapidly. Very soon she reached 6 points, tying for first place with the NPC slaves, but no hidden clues were triggered.
She thought for a moment and went into a fourth battle. At that moment, the system interface suddenly popped up a message: Slave Master Asgair has airdropped Healing Salve to slave 4023. Accept?
Chloe was thrilled inside. She clicked accept and then used the Healing Salve. The pain vanished and her wounds quickly healed. Constantine Stewart’s move meant he’d been watching the Arena all along, and now they had a way to connect.
In the fourth battle, Chloe fought a virtual character. The opponent seemed heavily injured, while she had just been healed, so she won this one quickly. At this point, Chloe’s points finally climbed to first place in District One of the Arena.
"Ding‑dong!" The system’s voice even sounded a little crisper and cuter. "Congratulations to slave 4023 for setting a new record and becoming the highest‑score founder, successfully leading all slaves in District One of the Arena. Hidden quest triggered. Accept?"
Chloe’s eyes lit up, and she clicked accept.
It was a recruitment letter from Slave Master Asgair, asking her to join the army and overthrow the tyranny. Chloe smiled and clicked accept recruitment, then exited the game.
Because they had seen Chloe’s points, Charles Taylor and the others had already logged out of the game, and Lian Ke had also quit. She sat next to Charles, her face not looking too good.
"How was it, Chloe?" The three of them now looked at Chloe with a faint touch of fanaticism in their eyes. In the Arena she’d been genuinely fierce; no one had expected such a delicate little girl to be that brave and ruthless.
Charles Taylor’s gaze on her openly showed his admiration and affection.
"If nothing goes wrong, we’ve already found the way to clear this level. Become the bosses of the three Arenas, accept Slave Master Asgair’s recruitment, and overthrow the tyranny—that should let us clear the dungeon."
Chloe spoke with a relaxed smile. The little girl had just come out of the game; her face was still a bit pale, her energy somewhat drained, but her voice was sweet, and her dark, lively eyes were full of spirit, making her irresistibly endearing.
Everyone cheered on the spot.
Lian Ke’s face shifted slightly as she looked at Chloe. She had also entered the Arena. As a survival expert, she had won the first round but lost the second, withdrawing only after being severely injured. Now, seeing Chloe unlock the hidden quest and successfully rendezvous with Constantine Stewart inside the dungeon, her heart couldn’t help but sink.