Chapter 74: Aquatic Lord (1/2)

As more players continued to arrive, the frogmen village became ever more crowded.

Eleena and the village elder kept everyone calm, so that the frogmen just stared in bemusement as the players ran about the place. Some foolishly delved into the sea, looking for treasure, but never made it very far before sea monsters made a meal of them.

If not for the forbiddingly cold weather, and the thick layer of snow that lay upon the ground, the players might even have turned the beach into an archaeological dig site, and not a single crab would have been spared.

It wasn’t that the frogmen had never seen humans before—but these players were of a different breed.

How could they throw their lives away so eagerly? Why did they insist on causing such a ruckus? The frogmen neither knew nor dared to ask. They simply let the players do as they pleased.

Truth be told, if not for Xi Wei’s foresight on this matter, following up on Vela’s successful formation of an alliance with the frogmen by designating them as friendly units which could not be attacked… no doubt some of the more belligerent players would already be testing their blades on these hapless bystanders.

Fortunately, Princess Leah’s arrival soon brought an end to the players’ assorted antics.

Because they recognized her as the quest-giver NPC from the last raid on the Rotten Bones Church, and remembered her spectacular entrance towards the end, the princess was now well-regarded among the more experienced players. Considering how the newcomers had themselves been brought in under the close tutelage of these more-experienced players, she enjoyed a fair bit of second-hand renown as well. As such, they were hanging onto every word she was saying.

Angora, who had never commanded such influence with the players, was on the verge of tears. He’d been there all along, leading them, training them… he’d been doing all of that before her! Damn it, why?

After the players had settled down (if ever so slightly), Edward introduced Princess Leah to the frogmen elder.

Certainly, in their exploration of the area, many players had noted this unusual-looking member of the frogmen tribe. Some of the most audacious players had even wanted to go up and have a laugh at his expense, but Edward and the others had grimly shooed them off.

“Greetings, elder. I am Leah Yakaran, Princess of Tierra.”

Grandpa Registrar, who had also been a majordomo for such functions before, stepped in to remind the princess of the proper etiquette. As a noble lady from Tierra meeting with the leader of another species, there were certain pleasantries to be exchanged.

“Well met, human princess. We are honoured to receive you in this humble place,” the frogman elder said gently. “Not a single blade of grass to be found here, such is our naked hospitality, heh heh heh…” Amused at his own wit, the frogman elder chuckled.

Leah could only smile politely. “Well, it is a sandy shore.”

The elder carried on about one thing after another for a while, but it was all just insubstantial small-talk.

If the old man—old frog—kept going on like this, they wouldn’t be finished even by sunset.

And so, the young woman came right out and said it, “This may be blunt of me, but I must know: Why is it that you would rather fight a hopeless battle than abandon this stretch of beach?”

This Warty Tidal Flat along the Grey Fjord Port held some strategic value to the Society of the Secret Eye, but only as a landing point for private traders. They wanted to build a port here for their own exclusive use, for no other reason but to boost the flow of goods through the region.

Besides the advantage of the terrain itself, the beach basically held no worth. No mineral wealth beneath the ground, unsuitable for growing crops in the salt-soaked sand… there was some fishing to be had in the shallows, but any further out to sea and you’d be beset by monsters.

Just as the elder had said, it was a humble place.