---Viktor's POV---
I watched as Edgar studied the unfamiliar girl, noting how he didn't sense any magical fluctuations from her. He probably thought she was just an ordinary person who had suddenly awakened.
Realizing I had forgotten something important, I explained, "Ah, by the way, she did learn magic from the Frostmoon Goddess' school. However, she's been afflicted with a Mana Devouring Vine and can't use it for now."
Alyanne's face instantly turned pale.
"Mana Devouring Vine?!"
I could see the horror dawn in her eyes as she processed this information. She'd clearly read about it in books—a parasitic magical creature that absorbs the host's mana, extremely dangerous. There wasn't a single record of a host surviving after being parasitized by it.
Her expression went blank, as though the sky had collapsed.
I felt a headache coming on. "Oh, that's on me. I didn't get to tell you before. The cuts and bruises are an easy fix, but the damage inside... that's going to take a while to heal."
Racking my brain, which hadn't communicated with ordinary people for hundreds of years, I tried to recall some comforting techniques.
"Actually, Mana Devouring Vine isn't as scary as you think. Compared to magical creatures that can kill you instantly, isn't it much better?" I attempted, then added, "The vine only absorbs the life force of regular people. You're a mage. As long as you still have mana in your body, it won't pose a threat to you."
The name Mana Devouring Vine was undeniably terrifying. That was why I hadn't explained it earlier. But the more I tried to comfort her, the paler her face became.
I awkwardly stopped. "Uh, never mind. Just take your time processing this."
I had underestimated how much ordinary people feared magical creatures. This probably felt like having a ghost baby inside her that could burst out at any moment and wreak havoc?
She still had a long recovery ahead. There was no rush to explain everything now.
Meanwhile, Edgar and I had our own matters to discuss. Before leaving, I stopped Luminaris.
"You stay here and take care of her."
"?? Why is it always me?!"
"Because you're the most idle," I replied mercilessly, shutting the chapel door behind me.
"... F... fuck you, Viktor. Fuck, you!"
---
Outside the church, a gentle breeze rustled through the overgrown ruins of broken walls and tiles.
Edgar pulled out a supply list. "The triangular ruler is secured. The other materials are mostly basic tools, and we have extra clothing as well."
"You're sure that's all you need for your helpers to rebuild town?"
I reminded him, "They're helpers for all Watchers. You should call them players—uh, wait, NPCs shouldn't directly refer to them as players." I stumbled for a moment before settling, "Or according to the lore, they're the Returnees from Beyond entrusted with the supreme mission to save Aeltia."
The name felt overly long. I decided to put the matter aside for now.
After reviewing the supply list carefully, I nodded slightly. "Not bad. The quantity and variety of materials are better than I expected, especially the grass-woven clothing."
I closed the list and asked, "Are there more bandits on the wasteland lately?"
Judging by the distance from Honeyvale Town to the edge of the Great Oak Forest, Edgar had managed a round trip to Nary Town within a day.
His expression flickered briefly before he nodded. "Yes, there's been some trouble outside."
He then recounted everything he'd learned from Fuki.
"The number of supplies he brought definitely exceeds what an average wasteland drifter could trade. It's at least seventy percent credible."
I rubbed the supply list in my hand, remaining silent for a long time. Finally, I looked at Edgar with a complex expression. "Let's put Nary Town's situation aside for now. But did you really just turn around and leave?"
I still remembered when I first met Edgar.
Back then, he had accepted an extremely difficult mission from the Church—rescuing a village about to be overrun by magical creatures, with fewer than ten guards under his command.
The "about to be overrun" note on the report had already reached the Radiant Church headquarters, long after the village's defenses were compromised. It was obvious to anyone that the task was a setup by someone in the Church who disliked him.
The mission was doomed to fail, giving them an excuse to hold him accountable.
But Edgar still accepted it and departed the same day. He had found the only surviving child of the village hiding in a wine jar in the cellar.
Unfortunately, since the village only had one survivor, the mission was still deemed a failure, and he was penalized.
Thanks to the twists of fate, when Edgar and I crossed paths, both of us were injured to the point where neither could defeat the other, leading to our eventual acquaintance.
For someone like him, who had saved a single child from an almost-certain death, I found it hard to believe he would leave people to die.
My doubtful gaze said it all.
Edgar glanced at me coldly. "I thought you understood the state of The Watchers better than I do. We can't afford to take in a large number of refugees."
I coughed awkwardly, suddenly feeling guilty. "Hm, when you put it like that…"
The Watchers were in a terrible situation—reputation maxed out, while every other metric was in the negatives. Our only food sources were red-scaled worms caught yesterday and the forest two kilometers away.
Refugees, lacking combat power, couldn't survive in the Great Oak Forest on their own and might even attract magical creatures to discover Honeyvale Town's wards.
As for housing, all the members, plus players, were still crammed inside the church.
We had no space to accommodate more people. Not being able to take in free manpower just showed how terrible a leader I was.
Indeed, disposable, death-defying, self-sufficient players were much more cost-effective.
Edgar continued, "The helpers we need right now have to be at least as useful as that ice dragon you brought back. Refugees aren't worth it."
I grinned mischievously. "The Watchers already have a bad reputation. Now we're just adding a few more critics. That said, this batch of supplies is pretty plentiful. Since the refugees' tradeable goods are limited, we'll only be doing business with them twice. No real negative impact overall."
At most, it would break the illusions of a few young idealists who still believed in the Knight of Dawn.
I eyed the supply list, already thinking about tomorrow's updated player quest board. Perhaps the additional rewards for the house-building task could be raised a bit.
After some hesitation, Edgar asked, "You mentioned new helpers are coming soon. How many?"
I thought for a moment.
I had 164 divine power points remaining, which seemed like a lot compared to the start.
However, creating a player's initial body cost 10 points, their personal game panel cost 1 point, and upgrading to Level 2 with basic magical blessings cost another 10 points...
There were still three veteran players.
I planned to give the players a second magical blessing once they leveled up to Level 5. Or, to put it another way, unlock their second skill.
This also required divine power.
After careful calculations…
"Let's start with six," I replied.
New players could reach Level 2 in just one day, and the divine power required for the initial magical blessing couldn't be skimped on.
In total, it would take 126 points of divine power. The remaining 38 points were reserved for emergencies. Otherwise, if something happened to Luminaris one day, there wouldn't even be enough divine power to save him.
Speaking of players, I finally had some good news to share. I habitually rested a hand on Edgar's shoulder and said earnestly.
"It's the start-up phase—ah no, the organizational rebuilding phase—so progress is bound to be slow. But I've already found an all-rounder player who knows architecture and is skilled in farming and weaving! And very soon, we'll be able to leave our current lifestyle behind."
Edgar sidestepped to avoid my hand and rejected the big promises I was making.
"Just tell me which part of that is actually true."
I was speechless. Was my credibility really that bad?
"Of course, it's all true!"
I had seen the applicant's information earlier in the afternoon while spectating Alyanne's tragic ordeal and eating snacks.
I had thoroughly investigated before granting beta testing qualifications.
But Edgar still looked unconvinced.
So far, the three players he had encountered—plus me—were all eccentric individuals. It was hard for him to imagine these people being capable of delicate tasks like weaving.
The skepticism in his eyes was so strong that even I started doubting myself.
Even though I had checked the player's information and all traces they had left online, the person clearly had deep expertise in all three skills and had shared their own results—not copied images.
Everything pointed to it being genuine.
But... The internet, after all. Who could tell truth from lies?
I dismissed the thought. Never mind, even if they were a fraud, I could just kick them out when the time came.
Although I could currently only create ten divine avatars, meaning there could be no more than ten players, those ten avatars could be reused.
If this player didn't work out, I could just delete their account and pick someone else.
Absolute power brought ultimate freedom!
---
Once business was settled, the two of us entered the prayer room again.
Alyanne had already passed out. Luminaris stood far from the bed, looking nervous.
"I really took care of her properly! It wasn't me!"
I placed the leftover sweetfruit from Edgar's earlier trade by the bed.
"I know. When she wakes up, feed this to her. She's been fasting for too long. Don't let her eat too much at once."
This fruit was our only staple food for now. I looked down on Luminaris's overreaction. Did I really seem like the type of boss who would blame people without understanding the situation?
Alyanne had lost too much blood and hadn't eaten in a long time. Fainting was completely normal. Anyway, it would take a long time for her to recover. There was plenty of time to discuss her placement later.
I was about to leave when I remembered something and paused.
"By the way, when she wakes up, give her the 'Player Communication Handbook' I gave you."
Luminaris looked around and took two seconds to realize. "Me?"
"Who else?!" I asked incredulously. "Does Edgar have the handbook? Besides, it was already hard enough to get you to learn a few basic phrases. You won't even use the book."
Edgar studied the unconscious Alyanne on the bed. "You're not going to give her a spiritual mark?"
I calmly replied, "I'm not so far gone as to do that. She's still a divine believer."
Though whether she believed in the Frostmoon Goddess or the God of War remained unclear.
Believers weren't bound by something as simple as a master-servant contract. Players were my greatest safeguard. The fewer unstable factors, the better.
The common phrases in the Player Communication Handbook were enough to help her become a qualified quest NPC. In other words, she only needed to respond to a few key words.
"Besides, keeping her away from players is also a form of protection," I added.
A naive dragonborn in the hands of players... who knows what could happen to her? There were some things players couldn't know just yet.
"And after that?" Edgar asked, "Are you really going to have her do odd jobs?"
As he spoke, his gaze stayed on Alyanne's missing right hand.
I sighed and spread my hands. "Maybe she can teach water and ice magic. As for her hand... there'll be a chance to restore it later."
Though it might take a long time. Limb regeneration was advanced magic. In my case, it was the kind of spell that would drain me to the point of needing burial.
So, just like making Alyanne a Dragon Language Magic instructor, it would take time.
"Dragon Language Magic is incredibly powerful—an invaluable skill tree. With Ludwig currently trapped in Dragon Valley, she's our best option. This ability justifies the risks her identity poses, as well as the time and effort needed to support her. All things considered, saving her is still worth it."
Edgar reminded me expressionlessly: "But she has Mana Devouring Vines inside her. You know how difficult those are to deal with."
Alyanne had learned about them from secondhand church records. The Watchers often chose uninhabited monster dens to evade the Church's pursuit. Having faced monsters directly, Edgar knew how troublesome Mana Devouring Vines could be.
They weren't as hopeless as Alyanne believed—completely incurable and inevitably fatal. But solving the problem wasn't easy, either. The Watchers had only succeeded once, and it had required rare, precious potions.
Where could we get those now?
And without removing the Mana Devouring Vines, she couldn't use magic at all. She couldn't become a magic instructor.
"Leave it to me," I said confidently, patting my chest. "There's a magic node near the church. As long as she stays in the town, her life won't be in danger."
"Though the magic node here is small, it's enough to sustain two patients. Developing an improved potion is just research. Give me six months!"
Edgar was surprised. "You know how to improve potions?"
"Live long enough, and you learn a bit of everything. I almost ascended to godhood under the name of the God of Botany and Healing—would you believe that?"
Edgar twitched, sighing at me.
"Last time, you said you almost ascended as the God of Forging and Smithing."