MMORPG: I was BUGGED-Chapter 327: Strategic Reinforcement

"We should pick up the pace tomorrow," Sylvan declared, a hint of impatience in his voice. "Two hours a day won’t cut it."

"I don’t mind, but the others still have classes the next day," Ignis pointed out, a sense of unease lingered on his face.

Sylvan, however, was resolute. "Then replace them. Find someone who could commit to working for four hours a day."

The directive made everyone exchanged glances with each other.

Sylvan’s perspective resonated with the group. The challenges of the Lost Forest, hidden mysteries awaiting discovery, called for a more dedicated exploration.

Competing against other guilds, with their greater numbers, resources, and time, necessitated an increase in their allotted time for this quest if they aimed to outmaneuver their rivals and secure the elusive Golden Tail Kitsune.

Xin and Victor harbored no resentment towards Sylvan. They understood the practicality of Sylvan’s approach –– a desire to maximize his investment and ensure success in acquiring the Kitsune.

It was a shared objective, and the urgency of the quest left no room for lingering hesitation.

However, the thought of being kicked out of the group held little weight for Xin and Victor. They recognized the fluid nature of these virtual alliances, and the possibility of joining another group or forming their own loomed as a viable alternative.

The only drawback lay in potentially losing the progress they had made thus far.

More significantly, the fear lingered that any delay could cost them the chance to acquire the Golden Tail Kitsune, a prize they couldn’t afford to forfeit.

As the party stood at the first checkpoint, the path ahead appeared both challenging and uncertain, with more trials and traps awaiting them in the days to come.

"Well?" Sylvan turned to the group, seeking their collective decision.

Victor exchanged glances with Xin. "Are you okay with spending four hours in the game everyday until we find this Golden Tail Fox?"

Xin replied, "I’m fine with it. Are you?"

"What do you mean?" Victor inquired.

"The project for the auction," Xin stated matter of factly. "Mine is already halfway finished, so I don’t have trouble exerting more effort into this quest."

Victor’s expression contorted, and he hesitated before responding, "Egh . . . I-I’m fine. So let’s just find this Kitsune as soon as possible."

Xin regarded him with a deadpan stare. "Are you sure?"

Victor avoided his eyes and glanced to the side. "Y-yeah."

Ignis burst into laughter, slapping both Lord Scrooge and Victor on the back. "Well, there you have it, Sylvan. They’re fine with it!"

Sylvan merely crossed his arms and harrumphed. "You better commit to your words. Let’s meet up again at this point, and don’t be late tomorrow." His stern gaze landed on Seraphim.

Seraphim responded with a serene smile before disappearing, logging out of Guildbane.

"See you then," Drakoon bid farewell, following suit and logging out.

"Man, I need to take a bath," Luna chimed in.

"In the middle of the night?" Ignis questioned, his face wrinkling in mild fascination at the thought. His expression flushed and his nostrils flared at the imagination.

Luna frowned and smacked Ignis on the head. "It’s noon here in my zone. And stop with that disgusting face. I know what you’re thinking."

With that, she burst into particles, logging out of the game.

’Right, some of these guys are in different time zones,’ Xin mused to himself.

Without another word, Sylvan logged out, leaving behind a final warning not to be late.

Victor, shaking his head, remarked, "That guy sure is persistent."

"He’s just strict. The leader’s position befits him. If only he could tone down the nagging, though," Xin commented.

"Like I said, just don’t let his words affect you. Ignore. Ignore," Victor advised before bidding his farewells to Xin. "See you tomorrow."

"See you," Xin replied as Victor departed.

Now, with only Xin and Hilda remaining, Xin turned to face her and asked, "Can you locate the Golden Tail Kitsune from here?"

Hilda shook her head. "It must be far deeper in the forest. If you want, I’ll hunt it down now."

Xin shook his head. Due to the number of player restrictions placed upon the Lost Forest, alone, he could only stay in a certain area around the saving point.

The system would prevent him from venturing further if he didn’t have the necessary numbers required by the Lost Forest.

"Just locate its hideout so we’ll breeze through it tomorrow," Xin instructed.

He considered asking Hilda to disable the traps as well, but since they respawned every ten minutes, there seemed to be no point in doing that.

"Right-o!" Hilda cheerfully responded before disappearing in a blur. "See you tomorrow, Lord Scrooge!"

As Hilda went on her way, Xin couldn’t help but reflect on the loyalty she exhibited as one of the strongest NPCs. Among them, Hilda was also the easiest to talk to.

Elysia, while good and all, belonged to another dimension, making it challenging to contact her. And her appearance was limited, as well.

Meanwhile, Evangeline was nowhere to be found. He didn’t want to call and interrupt her because he was afraid of the repercussion of disturbing her during her vacation spree.

"I wonder where she is, and what she’s doing . . ." Xin pondered to himself as he prepared to log out.

But before he pressed the log out button, another group successfully reached the save point.

Blinking in surprise, he realized it was none other than Tristan and Tiffany’s guild, Doom Serenity.

"This forest is full of traps and dangers."

"We’re already missing two players before reaching here."

"Are we going to be okay?"

"Just how far do we need to go?"

"Can we reinforce our numbers here?" Tiffany asked Tristan.

"We can; we have another group coming this way," Tristan assured her.

Tiffany released a big breath. "Thank god we can reinforce our ranks. Let’s message them to meet us here."

Observing their conversation, Xin found himself intrigued. The strategy had crossed his mind before, but witnessing it being executed added a new layer of understanding to the concept.

So, they could do that? Xin thought.

Large guilds clearing dungeons with player restrictions also executed this type of strategy, having different groups supporting or reinforcing the main ranks.

Since dungeons took a significant amount of time to complete, and players couldn’t log out without forfeiting their progress, it became a well-known strategy in dungeon exploration.