【 NEVERMIND. HE CAN KEEP GETTING APPRENTICE WHITE SHOES 】

What would be the consequence of wiping out all the non-elven races in Elven Kingdom?

If someone asked Jasmine this question a few months ago, she would’ve thought they were just bored and talking nonsense.

After all, isn’t eliminating enemies the norm in most games?

So what? Are players expected to pity their enemies?

Maybe act like saints?

Besides, the main storyline of Elven Kingdom revolves around the resurgence of the elven race. Given that the hostile races, according to the game’s lore, have committed countless atrocities against the elves, eliminating them was simply a natural course of action for the players.

But now, after slowly getting hooked on the game for months and gradually realizing how different Elven Kingdom was from other games, and seeing just how eerily similar it was to the real world…

Jasmine’s perspective had begun to shift.

This is a game—but at the same time, it isn’t.

At least… not for those NPCs whose intelligence is so lifelike it blurs the line between real and fake.

In a world this vivid and convincingly real, some things can’t simply be approached with a typical “gamer” mindset.

So, when she heard of Demacia’s question, Jasmine instantly thought of the most likely consequence of eliminating all the hostile races.

“Well… that would very likely spark fear among all the other neutral or friendly races. The Goddess will likely be seen as a true evil god. Even if she never reveals her real identity, the other races could still join forces against her. Worse, it might trigger an all-out attack from the gods themselves…”

“Perhaps even the gods who had stayed neutral during the war a thousand years ago might now turn hostile because of it.”

That was Jasmine’s reply.

The actions of the players can drastically alter the plot of the game.

And in a game world this realistic, Jasmine believed something like that could definitely happen.

Of course, looking at it from a different angle, if the Goddess was powerful enough, if the number of players was vast enough, and if the elves could endure the inevitable backlash of being marked as the ultimate enemy by every other race…

Then eradicating those who had persecuted the elves wouldn’t exactly be unjustified, now would it?

Retribution, after all, was only fair.

But if it truly came to that, Elven Kingdom might as well change its name to Calamity Kingdom, for it would no longer be a tale of resurgence but one of unbridled conquest and destruction.

Not to mention, if the Goddess really did have such overwhelming power, then she wouldn’t still be playing the long game. She would have already seized the supreme throne, standing unchallenged at the pinnacle of the world.

Jasmine would’ve never even considered these kinds of thoughts in the past. Because from her point of view as a player who was only interested in fighting, pondering about stuff like this just seemed like a waste of time.

But now, after she had long immersed herself in the game, come to regard herself as one of the elves, and begun seeing things no longer through the lens of a player but as part of this world…

The implications became harder to ignore.

“You’re right,” Demacia said, nodding in agreement. “Attempting to exterminate all hostile races would almost certainly pit the Goddess against every other race, as that’s the sort of thing only evil gods would do.”

“But have you ever thought about this?” she asked. “The elves were nearly driven to extinction by them. If our enemies could do it to our faction, then why can’t the elves do the same in return?”

This was perhaps the one thought that still left her with a lingering sense of unease. When she first started the game, the concept of vengeance had seemed clear and justified to her—an eye for an eye, a fair repayment for the suffering the elves had endured. It felt like the natural response. But now, she found herself questioning whether seeking revenge through similar acts of destruction was really the right answer.

After hearing her response, Demacia let out a sigh.

“That’s actually the second thing I wanted to talk about, Sister Jasmine. What do you think is the real reason the elves were targeted?”

“Wasn’t it because of their beautiful appearance and high mana affinity? Because other races coveted those traits?”

Jasmine offered.

“Heh, I knew it,” Demacia chuckled. “That’s the mainstream view among most players, and it’s also considered by everyone to be the background setting of the game. I didn’t expect that you would think so too…”

He shook his head as he spoke.

Hearing that, Jasmine felt a flicker of realization.

According to the game’s lore, it was the elves’ arrogance that led to their downfall but from what Demacia was implying, it sounded like there might be more to the story…

She glanced at him and asked, “What do you know?”

Demacia grinned mischievously.

“Heh. Sister Jasmine, you know I’m the founder of the Amway Company, right? Well, I also happen to be the player with the most dealings with non-elven races in the entire server.”

“Especially those factions operating in the underground!”

“So over time, I’ve come to learn quite a few secrets from my dealings with them.”

His expression showed an absolutely smug expression.

Jasmine was a little surprised.

But it made sense, considering Demacia had a rather notorious reputation across the server for stirring up trouble. His favorability with the NPCs was rock-bottom—lower, in fact, than hers, despite her not interacting with NPCs all that much up until recently.

Nevertheless, for the sake of making money, this guy had cozied up with several underground forces. So, the idea that he might have uncovered some secrets that regular players didn’t know wasn’t too far-fetched.

“Cut to the chase. What exactly do you know? Spill it.”

Jasmine asked with an impatient look.

Demacia didn’t keep her waiting this time.

His expression grew serious as he spoke:

“Actually… over the past thousand years while the Goddess was slumbering, the reason the Elves were persecuted by other races wasn’t simply because of their physical beauty.”

“Well…it did play a part, but it wasn’t the main reason.”

“The true reason lies in the fact that the Elves never abandoned their faith of their Patron Deity.”

They never gave up on their faith?

Jasmine’s heart stirred.

A thought suddenly occurred to her.

Demacia went on:

“Hehe, I was fortunate enough to befriend an evil god cultist living underground, you see— cough, cough, hey, don’t look at me like that! I wasn’t really befriending him! I was just pretending, honestly, nothing more…”

“Anyway,” Demacia continued, regaining his composure, “through that guy, I learned something about the gods… you see, according to him, if a true god falls into slumber, but their believers continue to worship them with unwavering faith, there’s a chance that god can awaken once again.”

Demacia spoke with a surprisingly serious expression.

Jasmine, on the other hand, was deep in thought. Her mind raced as she tried to process this new information.

“You mean…” she started slowly, trying to piece things together, “the reason the elves were persecuted was because the other races feared the awakening of the Goddess?”

But even as she said it, she shook her head and corrected herself, her expression growing increasingly grave:

“”No… it’s not that the other factions feared her awakening. Rather, it’s more like those gods behind those races feared it!” Her voice grew more intense with each word, the weight of the revelation settling over her.

She stood still for a moment, her thoughts racing.

“So, they incited their believers to hunt down the Elves?”

Her voice lowered, as if speaking the words aloud would make the truth more real. “So the tragedy of the Elves these past thousand years… was ultimately the result of a conflict between the gods.”

“That’s the real reason behind the Elves’ persecution and their downfall. In other words… the Elves’ true enemy wasn’t any particular race. Sure, there’s interracial hatred, but that’s just a surface-level issue. The real root of the problem lies with the gods behind those races.”

“The Gods are the real enemies of the Elves!”

The more Jasmine spoke, the more confident she became.

Demacia gave her a thumbs-up in agreement.

“Exactly! That’s it, Sister Jasmine, you finally get it! That’s exactly what I meant!”

“Those gods are our real enemies and also the Goddess’s true targets!”

“And the true main storyline of Elven Kingdom must be to assist the Goddess in defeating or even destroying those hostile gods, and help her become the ultimate sovereign of this world!”

Jasmine nodded slightly.

She sighed aloud and said, “Okay. You’ve convinced me.”

Then she shot a glance at Demacia.

“Alright, out with it—what kind of scheme are you cooking up this time?”

Demacia chuckled mischievously.

“Naturally, it’s just like what I said before. I’m trying to change the faith of other races!”

“Hehe, going on a total genocide route carries a lot of risks for our faction. So instead… why not change the faith of the enemies we’ve defeated? I’m sure this method is a better way to strike at the root of the problem!”

“This world isn’t like the real one. Here, what shapes a race’s thoughts and behavior is mostly reliant upon their patron deity.”

“If that’s the case, then converting the believers of other gods to our side is a perfectly valid way to strengthen the Goddess’s influence!”

“And who is our Goddess, anyway? She’s the World Tree! She’s the Goddess of Life! The Mother of Nature!”

“Such a magnificent being… wouldn’t you agree that she fits the perfect role to become the one to govern all things, to embrace all creation, and to become the patron that all races worship?”

“On the contrary, if we focus solely on the path of revenge, it would come off as narrow-minded and shortsighted, don’t you think?”

“Hehe, of course, I’m not saying we should simply call off the war or forgive our enemies either…”

“Waging war is inevitable. After all, who has ever risen to prominence without having fought for it?”

“I’m just thinking, when it comes to those who surrender, or enemies we capture, or even those who could be swayed to our side, we can convert them and turn them into allies!”

“Of course, they’d be our subordinates. The vassals of the Elves, so to speak.”

Demacia was visibly excited, gesturing animatedly as he spoke.

Jasmine, meanwhile, looked more and more surprised.

But when she noticed his shifty eyes darting around, her brows twitched ever so slightly.

“Demacia.”

“Hmm?”

“Come on—what are you really after with this plan?”

Cough, cough, cough…

“Sister Jasmine! Do I really seem like someone who only thinks about profit? Can’t I be motivated by love and passion sometimes too?”

Demacia put on a wounded expression, exaggerating it for effect.

However, Jasmine wasn’t buying it for a second.

She hadn’t known him for very long, but some things were just too obvious to ignore.

This guy…

Sure, he might genuinely be considering things from the NPCs’ perspective, but from what she knew about his reputation, she was sure he wouldn’t lift a finger unless there was something in it for him.

She gave him a narrowed smile.

Demacia, feeling her gaze linger on him too long, began to sweat a little.

He chuckled awkwardly for a few seconds before finally giving in.

“W-Well, you know, Amway has hit a bit of a bottleneck lately… cough, cough. If we could somehow spread the elven faith among other races, it’d make some of my company’s operations much easier. It’d also help us scale up, recruit some professional labor, and ease the burden on a lot of players too. Hehehe.”

Jasmine: “…”

She had known all along that his intentions weren’t entirely pure. Still, even with that agenda, what he proposed was still a rare and commendable opportunity.

Nevertheless…

“But,” Jasmine shifted the topic, “While I agree with what you’re saying. However, have you ever considered this? Can you truly represent the elves? Can you speak on behalf of our faction?”

“At the end of the day, we’re just players. But the ones who have suffered persecution are the native elves. Do you really have the standing in our faction to make decisions on their behalf?”

She wouldn’t have brought this up before.

But now that she had fully immersed herself in this world, she no longer saw things solely from a player’s perspective.

Thus, she couldn’t help but think about it…

Maybe she was overthinking it.

Maybe, to some players, it was a pointless question.

Still, Jasmine wanted to hear Demacia’s answer.

“Sigh… Jasmine, if you really let the natives elves decide, what do you think they’d choose?”

Demacia shook his head.

Jasmine hesitated momentarily before offering a rueful smile.

“…You’re right.”

The elves in this world were simply far too kind.

If the players chose this path, the elves might actually be even more supportive of it than the players themselves…

On the other hand, if they chose to exterminate the other hostile races entirely, it might make many of the natives feel uncomfortable instead.

They were truly a gentle and perhaps even pitiful race…

And yet, one couldn’t help but respect them.

At the very least, Jasmine didn’t dislike the nature of these NPCs.

After all…

With such good-tempered NPCs, how could any player dislike them?

The real world was already complicated enough, and the people’s hearts even more so.

The older Jasmine got, the more she realized how rare true friendship was…

How much she missed the innocence of her childhood, the times when friendships were formed free of ulterior motives…

And yet, even those childhood friends of hers often grew distant over the years, until they were practically strangers.

But here in Elven Kingdom, there existed this group of simple, kind, and beautiful beings.

No one would turn down the chance to befriend them.

That’s why, over time, many players naturally began to interact more with the native elves, forming bonds of friendship amongst them…

Gradually, more and more players stopped helping them just for the sake of doing tasks or gaining experience points.

Instead, they began to lend a hand out of genuine friendship, driven by a sincere desire to do something for the elves…

Some players, burdened by stress in real life, would even log in just to talk to their elven friends in-game, venting their frustrations…

And more often than not, those elves would offer heartfelt comfort in return.

In a way, Elven Kingdom had become a kind of emotional haven for some players, which was something unimaginable in any other game.

By now, Jasmine firmly believed that even if there was no quest involved, if any elves were to ever be kidnapped, it would still cause an uproar among the players…

“This… might just be Elven Kingdom’s greatest charm.”

She sighed softly.

It was for that very reason that she had raised the question earlier.

“Well then…Jasmine, can I count on you to leave these Orc Children in my care now?”

Demacia smiled.

Jasmine lifted her head.

She glanced at the main tent where the orc kids were sleeping and gave a slight nod.

“Okay, I’ll trust you just this once.”

“Awesome! Thanks, Sister Jasmine!”

Demacia gave her a big thumbs-up.

“But—”

Jasmine interjected, her tone turning serious again.

“While your idea has some potential, if you really want to pull it off, it won’t work with just one or two players. You’ll need widespread support, especially from the higher-ups in the Church of Life.”

“Because in a way, this could be considered the next major strategic direction for our faction.”

Demacia’s merry expression turned solemn once more.

“Yeah, I guess You’re absolutely right, Jasmine.”

“I’ll report it to Alice or Big Sister once I’ve finalized my plan.”

Jasmine shook her head.

“No need.”

“Huh?”

Demacia blinked in confusion.

The girl motioned behind him and said,

“Miss Zero is already here.”

Demacia instinctively turned around, only then did he realize that at some point, Zero had appeared behind him.

He quickly stood at attention and saluted.

“Big Sis—uh, I mean, Lady Zero!”

Evé: “…”

She silently looked at this rascal, who had been causing trouble after trouble ever since the first beta, with a complicated expression.

Nevertheless, despite his usual antics, her expression softened a little.

This punk, Demacia… had grown over the past few years, hadn’t he?

Although she hadn’t caught every word of his conversation with that ponytailed girl, she had heard enough to grasp the gist of what he was planning.

In fact, lately, after seeing the players ruthlessly wiping out the orcs with wanton abandon, she had been thinking about this issue herself…

Therefore, Demacia’s ideas made her pause, as some of them resonated with her.

Resorting to blind slaughter wouldn’t completely solve their problem.

More than that, Evé had noticed a troubling trend emerging among the players due to all the killing they had been doing.

After all… even if they treated this as a game, this world was still very much real.

The constant killing was bound to take a toll on some of the players’ minds.

It reminded her of the kind of PTSD seen in soldiers who had experienced wars back on Earth.

That part, at least, was easy to address.

Her amount of divine power had far surpassed what it was beforehand.

Therefore, she had already decided to use it to soothe the players’ minds and purge their negative emotions whenever they logged off.

What really deserved consideration was Demacia’s proposed approach to dealing with the other hostile factions.

Of course, the fact that she was here now meant she had already made her decision.

She gave Demacia a small nod.

“I understand. I’ll report your idea to Her Grace. I hope you’ll stay true to your intentions, and keep fighting for the Goddess, and for the future of the Elvenkind.”

Demacia’s eyes lit up, and then his expression turned respectful. He straightened his back and shouted in a formal tone:

“I, Demacia, will promise to complete this task, Lady Zero!”

Evé gave him a faint nod before turning to leave.

Behind her, she heard Demacia let out a relieved sigh, followed by cheerful laughter.

“Haha! I knew it. Big Sis would totally support my idea!”

Evé nodded inwardly.

Hmm…

Since this rascal had matured a little, maybe once this war was over, she’d stop deliberately rigging his lottery rates and let him pull a golden legendary prize for once…

After all, always getting white-apprentice item was kind of pitiful.

But just as she had that thought, she suddenly overheard a hushed, excited conversation between two male players nearby.

“Hey, hey! Did you see the new doujin that dropped yesterday? The one made by Valoran-sensei!”

“For real? That legendary author released another one?”

“Yup! This time, his doujin’s plot even ties into the current storyline with the Goddess having an epic ‘battle’ with the orcs. It’s amazing!”

“Hell yeah! Send me the file later!”

“No problem!”

Eve: “…”

Valoran…

That was the artist alias Demacia uses on that certain website.

“…Nevermind. He can keep getting apprentice white shoes.”

— 524 —

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