The events that followed were… a bit too chaotic, to say the least.
Honestly, I’ve probably blocked some of it from memory on purpose—selective amnesia to protect my sanity.
Like… a certain someone using this as a chance to “gather data” on the average development of nine-year-old lolis. Or the very unfortunate incident of someone sneakily patting my butt. Multiple times.
With all that conveniently forgotten, all I really remember is—
Booba.
Ahem. I mean… the warm affection of my big sisters.
“So cute when she’s embarrassed~”
“I wish I had such an adorable little sister.”
“Kids really are soft and squishy—so huggable~”
“Alright, that’s enough. Don’t bully the poor little one too much now,” Dolan said with a chuckle, finally rescuing me from the swarming crowd of over-enthusiastic lolicons.
You say that now, but you were the one who started all this, weren’t you!?
As I sulked internally, an unpleasant voice called out from not far away.
“So you’re the little brat who killed our Stormwind Guild members?”
A group of over thirty players strode toward us, clustered around a slightly smug-looking man. His nameplate read Black Shark, and he wore the telltale gear of a high-tier fire mage, clad head-to-toe in a full Lv.5 Explosive Set.
He wasn’t exactly ugly, but his condescending expression ruined any charm he might’ve had.
Still, as one of the Stormwind Guild’s senior members and a fully geared fire mage, the arrogance wasn’t totally unjustified.
I spotted a familiar face among the group and immediately pieced it together. I didn’t bother putting on a friendly front.
“So, are you all here to scold me or something? Did no one tell you what your precious members did first?”
“Three grown men ganging up to steal a little girl’s treasure chest—and then getting wrecked by said little girl. And now you’re mad about it and want revenge? Is that how Stormwind Guild operates? Puh-lease. How shameless.”
The Forest Ruins were already packed with players grinding mobs. Some were resting nearby and noticed the tension brewing. With Black Shark marching in like a drama queen, people started to gather out of sheer curiosity.
After hearing my side of the story, the crowd quickly began murmuring—side-eyes and disapproving looks aimed squarely at the Stormwind crew.
And truthfully, most of them hadn’t even wanted to come. They were only here because they had to save face. Now, being judged so publicly? Even more humiliating.
Three guys losing to a little kid and then whining for backup… Yeah. Not a good look.
Black Shark could clearly feel the shift in mood, but he didn’t care.
“That’s not the point,” he said, shaking his head. “All I know is that our brothers were killed. I’m not asking for much—just return their gear and apologize. We’ll call it even.”
…Wow. That thick skin must be armor-rated.
I rolled my eyes. “No.”
“…What did you say?” Black Shark’s brows twitched.
“I said no. Or do you need me to repeat it, big bro? You hard of hearing or something?”
That jab hit home.
His expression darkened. He clearly thought his proposal was super generous—how dare this little brat refuse him?
“You’re seriously not taking Stormwind Guild seriously, huh?”
“Oh no~ You got me~ Calling in your big guild name when you’re losing a fight… Are you that kid who runs home crying to mommy after losing a sandbox brawl?”
The moment I said that, the crowd exploded with laughter.
Stormwind’s members went red with embarrassment, unable to deny it without digging themselves in deeper.
Black Shark was absolutely fuming.
“You’ll regret this. Get her!” he barked. “Don’t just stand there! Kill the brat! Camp the respawn point and make sure she dies every time she revives!”
Even though a few of his guildmates were clearly ashamed, they still obeyed the order and began closing in.
I was completely surrounded.
…Not that I was worried.
“Is this what Stormwind Guild does? Ganging up on a kid like this?” a calm voice interrupted. Dolan stepped in front of me, her arms crossed and a cold smile on her lips. “For a so-called top guild, your dignity’s really… lacking.”
“Yeah, seriously! What kind of grown men pick on a little girl?”
“Stormwind’s just a name. Clearly, there’s nothing ‘stormy’ about your courage.”
“And don’t forget—it was your guys who were in the wrong in the first place.”
The other girls from Roseheart stepped forward one after another, lining up behind Dolan.
They’d clearly had enough of Stormwind’s bullying—and the fact that the target was an adorable cat-eared loli made it even more unacceptable.
“This is between us and the brat,” Black Shark growled. “Why’s Roseheart getting involved?”
His face was twisted with frustration—this was not how he expected this confrontation to go.
Black Shark had actually noticed Dolan and her party earlier. But back then, he figured they were just passing by. He hadn’t expected them to have anything to do with me.
Clearly, he’d underestimated things.
“What do you mean meddling?” Dolan said, eyes narrowing. “Anything that embarrasses Stormwind Guild is our business too.”
“You…!”
“Oh? Gonna start a fight now?” Dolan smirked, completely unfazed. “Guess even dogs bite when they’re desperate. Go ahead, Roseheart will gladly play with you.”
Black Shark looked like he was about to explode—but in the end, reason won out.
“Tch… we’re leaving.”
And just like that, he turned and stormed off, his guildmates trailing behind him in confusion.
“Wait, boss, we’re just leaving like this?” one of them asked, looking dazed.
“What, you planning to stay and fight? Idiot!” Black Shark snapped, all his frustration pouring onto that unfortunate member. What he didn’t realize, though, was that his outburst left a bitter taste in the hearts of more than a few Stormwind players.
Watching them slink off like whipped dogs, I couldn’t help but laugh to myself.
Still, I made sure to put on a proper act. “U-Um… Sister Dolan… was that really okay? You didn’t have to go that far for someone like me. I don’t want you making enemies just because of me…”
“Oh, drop the act already.” Dolan chuckled and pinched my cheek. “You were clearly using us as your shield from the start.”
Ack—she saw through me!
I stuck out my tongue, a little embarrassed. I mean, I did know about the long-standing tension between Roseheart and Stormwind Guild. That’s why I’d acted so smug earlier.
Dolan didn’t seem to mind though.
“Well, yeah, we don’t get along. You just got lucky—we were already assigned to this area. Our guild leader sent us here to stop outside interference with Kaiser and the others.”
Kaiser…? Ohh, so that’s what this is about.
Maybe realizing the mood was getting too serious, Dolan quickly switched topics. “Anyway, little one—why were you buying up all those bat souls earlier?”
I was about to go with my usual cover story, but then a new idea popped into my head.
“Well… since you helped me out, I’ll tell you a secret. But—you can’t tell anyone it came from me, okay?”
I told her about the hidden quest from that shady NPC, Siel. Of course, I tweaked the story a bit—replaced myself with a fictional “big sister” who’d discovered it.
“Hmm… but what’s that got to do with the bat souls?” Dolan’s eyes lit up, curiosity piqued.
“See, there’s a hidden affinity quest tied to that NPC,” I explained, nodding seriously. “If you give her 100 Dark Bat Souls, the quest reward goes up to 3 copper per run instead of 1. But you can only do it 500 times per person.”
With this, I could get Roseheart to spread the word internally, while also scoring tons of free Dark Bat Souls.
It wasn’t even a scam—technically they’d still profit. So it’s a win-win.
Just to make it official, I quickly contacted Siel via Herentis’s Heart and had her generate the affinity quest for real.
“Nana, call out in guild chat and tell everyone to save their bat claws, poison sacs, and Dark Bat Souls,” Dolan immediately ordered. “Start gathering from other towns too. Gu Ming, Mo Mo—you two head to Soma Village and see what you can find. Xiao Yu, coordinate local trades here.”
The Roseheart girls responded with brisk nods and scattered in all directions, their movements sharp and practiced.
“Not worried I’m lying to you?” I asked, genuinely impressed by Dolan’s decisiveness. Then again, you don’t end up in Roseheart’s leadership without brains.
She pinched my cheek again. “You think I can’t tell when someone’s lying? Though… I do get the feeling you’ve got some other plans in that little head of yours.”
I waved it off with a laugh. “N-no way! I’m just asking for a tiny favor, that’s all!”
“Don’t worry. We’ll give you a quarter of all the bat souls we collect,” Dolan said casually. “That should help you report back to your ‘sister.’ The claws and poison sacs, though—I can’t promise anything. Hope you understand.”
That offer was more than fair. Dolan clearly recognized the value of the info I’d provided. If they weren’t willing to give even that much, they might as well disband.
But surprisingly, I shook my head.
“Nah, keep the rest. I just want to mess with Stormwind Guild.”
Honestly, I’m not usually one to hold grudges… but those guys really crossed the line this time.