Chapter 61: Mysterious, Veteran Player?

“Scavenger Qilin strikes the wound, critical damage dealt, Blackwind Demon Wolf takes 68 points of damage!”

“Blackwind Demon Wolf is dead, you gain... experience.” As the system message echoed back, the other five members of the party stood frozen in shock. Their eyes were fixed in disbelief on the fallen corpse of the Blackwind Demon Wolf, unable to accept that a level 15 monster had been taken down by a lone level 13 archer-warrior.

Mei cast a puzzled glance at “Crouch to Talk.” She distinctly remembered him saying that the combat prowess of an archer-warrior was supposed to be weak… yet the evidence before her now suggested otherwise.

And then, what was the story behind that gleaming silver dagger? Could it be that Scavenger Qilin was a seasoned player who had deleted his old character to start anew?

A flurry of strange questions filled the minds of the five. It wasn’t until they saw Scavenger Qilin silently sitting down beside the corpse to rest that they remembered the battle was over and they too had more than a minute and a half to recover their MP and HP. They hurriedly took a seat.

After a short, weighted silence, the outspoken “Black Jasmine” could contain herself no longer and shattered the quiet of the Blackwind Forest, voicing the question on everyone’s mind:

“Qilin, this isn’t your first time playing ‘Epoch of Magic,’ is it?” Her words echoed the suspicions of the others.

But before she had finished, Meteor rolled his eyes and interjected, “If Qilin were an old hand, do you think he wouldn’t have a full set of gear?”

The truth dawned on everyone: it was true—if Scavenger Qilin had played before and had silver equipment, there was no way he'd be lacking a complete set after his class change.

I smiled slightly, and then saw Mei looking over at me, asking, “Did someone give you that dagger?” She was sharp enough to realize a newly promoted archer-warrior couldn’t possibly have earned silver gear on their own.

I thought for a moment and nodded, tacitly confirming her guess: the Enchanted Silver Kodo Beast was indeed handled by White Valentine and Black Tea, though I was the one who delivered the final blow...

“Qilin, you must have invested heavily in strength, right? I see you dealing dozens of damage effortlessly. Even ‘Talk’—a Storm Dwarf with innate strength—needs to use skills to manage that.”

“Jasmine, think before you speak…” Meteor responded again, ignoring the angry glare Jasmine shot his way. He continued, “Don’t look at me like that. Use your head. Look at his movement speed—it’s obvious he’s following a high-agility build. The high attack is thanks to the dagger.”

With that, everyone recalled how Scavenger Qilin’s speed had even surpassed that of the Blackwind Demon Wolf; even without skills, it was astonishing. For a level 13 player, it was clear he’d chosen an agility-based path!

Realizing this, Black Jasmine was left speechless, shooting Meteor a resentful look and lapsing into silence.

As Meteor finished speaking, my interest in him grew—he was indeed an intriguing character! Quiet for most of the journey, yet his keen observation and sharp insight cut straight to the heart of things. No wonder his first chosen spell in the game was a support magic, enhancing his companions’ strength to boost the party’s overall power—a far more valuable choice than a meagerly damaging tier-one earth spellcaster!

While I was sizing him up, Meteor was looking back at me with equal curiosity.

Having observed my entire fight, Meteor’s shock ran deeper than the others’—there were still some things he couldn’t figure out.

First, the matter of the silver weapon: it was clearly a high-attack weapon, but why would whoever gave it to Scavenger Qilin not also provide him with some basic armor?

Moreover, during the fight, Scavenger Qilin displayed a calm and composed warrior’s bearing, decisive combat instincts, precise technique, and an awareness of the terrain—traits that seemed far beyond a mere seventeen- or eighteen-year-old’s capability!

Too calm, too decisive!

Amazed, “Crouch to Talk” and “Xuanwu Titan” couldn’t resist pressing for details about the properties of the Silver Beast Magic Dagger. When they learned it was level 10 silver gear with an attack value of 8, they couldn’t help but marvel.

An 8-attack one-handed weapon was already a rare treasure for a level 16 warrior. Take “Crouch to Talk’s” bronze warhammer, for instance—a typical level 12 two-handed weapon, its attack was only 10–12 points.

Hearing this, I was surprised and couldn’t help but ask, setting aside my explanation about being unable to use archer-warrior skills for the moment:

“Warrior weapons only have 10–12 attack?”

I remembered the level 10 “Hardwood Longbow” I got from Holz had 10–12 attack! Storm Dwarves are warriors, and a high-attack class at that—there’s no reason their weapons should be inferior to the Hardwood Longbow.

And “Crouch to Talk” was even using a level 12 weapon...

But the answer that came back only left me more confused!

Level 10 warrior-class weapons all had attack values under 10; even at level 12, only bronze weapons could reach as high as 15!

Hearing this, I quickly cited my own case in rebuttal…

But no sooner had I spoken than all five of them were stunned!

“A quest reward? Are you saying your Hardwood Longbow was a gift from the class promotion NPC?” “Crouch to Talk” and “Xuanwu Titan” stared at me, eyes wide as bronze bells, their faces full of disbelief!

I hesitated, then glanced at Mei, Jasmine, and Meteor. All three wore the same incredulous expressions, suspicion written all over their faces.

Just as they were about to press me for answers, a sudden intuition struck—I turned my gaze to the bushes behind them and gestured for them to keep quiet.

“Crouch to Talk” and “Xuanwu Titan” quickly grasped what was happening, weapons at the ready, faces tense as they too stared at the bush Scavenger Qilin was watching.

“They’ve respawned!”