Lords of the Heavens

Chapter 162 Humanistic Care (Bonus Chapter 6 for Alliance Leader lanruoruo)

"Crack!"

A spark suddenly burst from the burning firewood in the fireplace, as if by some medium, or like a magical light summoned by some ritual, leaping precisely into everyone's eyes at that moment.

Then, it transformed into a huge, magnificent firework that slowly fell from the sky, like a curtain separating a separate, otherworldly space.

Inside the castle hall, the mercenaries were still moving around busily, and even those nearby inevitably became part of the background.

From somewhere, melodious piano music rose like moonlight, followed by six beautiful dancers who appeared like elves, stepping on the moonlight. Their graceful dance moves were like the ever-changing magic of a celestial being; it was truly extravagant.

But even these can only become background; the real protagonists are the family members sitting at the table. This seems to be a metaphor: only those who are strong enough can stay at the table and eat elegantly, instead of being eaten and becoming background.

It was at this moment that the narration began.

"Another month has come to an end, and the family has made great progress in all aspects."

"First of all, the family camp successfully upgraded to level 5, which was an important turning point."

"Secondly, the family blacksmith successfully forged a royal heavy scale armor, a superior heavy armor that only the royal guards could be equipped with."

"And the trade routes pioneered by George, the head of the family, are like a major artery that has injected fresh blood into the family, laying the foundation for the next hundred years. In the future, the family camp may have the opportunity to become a second Kah City."

"Although family member Hathaway disobeyed the head of the family's orders and went out on her own, her process of lying in wait and assassinating was also very exciting. She pleased the gods. She had her faults, but her merits were great. If the assassination of the Snow Witch Hathaway was not completed in the hottest part of summer, it would have been an inevitable defeat when winter came. From a long-term strategic point of view, it was very important."

"But the most outstanding one is still the head of the family, George. His broad-mindedness and excellent overall vision have successfully helped his younger brother Leon complete the title mission. Although this has affected the family's work to some extent, it has also successfully laid a solid foundation for the growth of the family camp."

"He was good at recognizing and using people, and arranged for Ron to serve as the duty blacksmith, which indirectly contributed to the successful creation of the four-star royal heavy scale armor."

"His ability to lead mercenaries through hardship to open up a trade route and wipe out a two-star wolf pack proves his capabilities."

"This month has been his shining month. He has gained an extra 15% completion rating, which, combined with the difficulty bonus of the mission storyline, brings his total extra completion rating to 20%, bringing his current total extra completion rating to 72%! This is an amazing number. Although the mission storyline is not yet complete, he has already secured second place on the newcomer leaderboard!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Wei suddenly noticed that the curtain, which resembled a grand fireworks display, was lifted, and two people walked in: one was Night Owl, a four-star internal affairs officer he already knew, and the other was a middle-aged man he didn't recognize.

Wow, it seems the non-mandatory settlement standards are quite high this time.

Upon seeing the two men enter, Hathaway immediately released Li Wei's arm, stepped forward, bowed to them, and said with some surprise, "Lord Night Owl, Lord Black Wolf, we never expected that you two would be the ones to oversee the mission settlement for us. We are truly honored."

"Hathaway, congratulations on getting your codename!"

Night Owl smiled slightly and gestured to the man called Black Wolf, who then sat down at the table naturally. Ron even had the honor of pulling out a chair for him.

Wow, these two have pretty high status.

Li Wei watched calmly, while Fila and Penny beside her were somewhat stunned and at a loss. They should know who these two were, but at this moment they didn't even have the right to go forward and greet them, and could only remain invisible.

In fact, neither Night Owl nor Black Wolf glanced at them after entering; their eyes were all fixed on Li Wei.

"Please sit down, don't be shy. This mission is about to end, and it's a rare opportunity for us to relax. We still have a long time tonight, so let's chat together."

Black Wolf smiled and spoke, while Night Owl sat opposite him. Ron and Hathaway refused to sit, one standing behind Black Wolf and the other behind Night Owl, appearing to be his trusted confidants.

Only then did Fila and Penny belatedly stand up.

Night Owl simply smiled faintly.
"Fira, settle the accounts. Penny, stay."

"Thank you, Your Excellency." Fila felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He had originally been thinking of getting some more benefits, but damn it, nobody has any rights. He still had a month left before his contract expired.

In the blink of an eye, the gray mist swallowed Fira, presumably entering an independent settlement space.

Only Penny stood there dumbfounded, unsure of what to do.

At this moment, only three people were sitting at the table. Li Wei finally realized that it was not appropriate for him to sit there for so long. The person opposite him was, after all, a big shot in the department. He couldn't be too arrogant.

But standing up again at this point seems even more inappropriate.

So he could only smile at the two big shots.

"George, do you want to settle the bill?"

The owl suddenly spoke.

"Um, sir, may I ask a few questions first?"

“Great, we have plenty of time this time, but I’m more curious about something. I remember five months ago you said you had no questions.”

Night Owl smiled gently, but he was a little petty.

"Reporting to you, my lord, I didn't want to ask questions before because I had too many questions, and they were all very naive and basic. You are obviously a great person, and I didn't want to waste this opportunity to ask questions. But now I feel that I have a certain understanding of the Alliance of Lords of the Heavens, so I dare to ask what kind of organization the organization I serve is?"

"Of course, I don't care about good and evil, because one's position determines one's perspective. I just want to know how I can avoid breaking the rules, and how to make better use of them."

"If my words have offended anyone, I am willing to accept punishment."

Li Wei carefully considered his words.

“Hehe, that’s interesting. Alright, Night Owl, I’ll answer for you.” Black Wolf laughed. “First of all, in the Alliance of Lords of the Heavens, you won’t be punished for asking these questions, and they’re not exactly profound or taboo matters. However, it’s quite surprising that you’d rather give up asking about the quest plot or how to strengthen yourself than ask about such basic rules.”

"As for the question you raised, you only need to understand two concepts."

"The first concept is to learn to be respectful. After you have received the most basic humanistic care, you will also know how to show the most basic humanistic care to others. Remember, maintaining order and peace is more precious than creating chaos and killing. Destruction may feel good for a while, but it won't last. What goes around comes around, and retribution will come sooner or later."

As he said this, Li Wei clearly saw a strange smile on the corner of the guy's mouth, as if he had thought of something to gloat over.

So what is the 'retribution' he's referring to?
Judging from his tone, it seems that the reason why the Alliance of Lords of the Heavens emphasizes humanistic care and pursues the business philosophy of maintaining order and peace is because they have suffered great losses in the past and been punished by certain beings...

As there's a saying back home—it's not that they were born kind, but that some people have been here before.

At this moment, the black wolf paused for a while to make sure Li Wei had thought about it carefully and remembered it thoroughly before uttering the second concept.

"The second concept is to believe that you will be rewarded for your efforts, but don't forget to be grateful when you receive benefits."

"I'm sorry I can't explain the first concept in too much detail, but as for the second concept, you can think of our territory organization as a company. A company recruits and trains you, not because it's bored and has nothing better to do, but because it needs to obtain greater and more benefits. Do you agree with this?"

"I agree!" Li Wei nodded. That was correct and reasonable.

"Very good, so based on this concept, how do you understand the beginner's task?" Gray Wolf continued to guide him patiently, as if afraid that Li Wei might misunderstand something.

"It's like new employee training. Only after passing the training can you become a full-time employee and sign a contract," Li Wei said, carefully choosing her words.

"Yes, but you only understand half of it. This beginner mission is not only for training and selecting outstanding new players, but also for training mid-level players and for gathering resources for advanced players. It's like taking three meals from one fish, making the most of everything. Do you understand that?"

"In other words, you can't unilaterally and one-sidedly think that this beginner mission is prepared specifically for you. After all, this world is a real world, not a virtual world on the Internet, nor is it a parallel world that can be infinitely replicated. The difficulty of initiating a beginner mission here is extremely high, and the cost is very high. It cannot be wasted casually."

"Can you understand what I'm saying?"

“I understand.” Li Wei nodded; the other person had explained it in great detail.

"Very good, so you should understand that new players are newly recruited employees of the company, players who join midway are senior employees of the company, and players who join later are core employees of the company. They have made many contributions in the chaotic killing battlefield, and then they will be matched with suitable new player mission worlds with richer rewards according to their ranking. For them, it is more of a benefit than a challenge. You will also be able to enjoy this benefit in the future."

"Or let me give you another example. You currently have three titles: Bear Hunter, Dog Slayer, and Tracker. If these three titles can be combined, they can become a powerful codename. However, you cannot obtain such a codename in the beginner missions. You have to join a suitable mission world midway through or later. You might even have to try and fail several times before you can get it. This is also a benefit for you."

"In short, this is the basic operating core of the Alliance of Lords of the Heavens. And does my answer above solve your problem?"

"Thank you, sir. I understand. For example, if this is the case, then the final boss in the quest storyline is a bonus for veteran players, and as a newbie, shouldn't I just quit while I'm ahead?"

Li Wei asked again.

Upon hearing this, Night Owl coughed lightly and replied:
“George, nobody wants you to give up. Black Wolf is just illustrating how our organization operates. You’re only ranked second on the newcomer list right now. If we were to advise you to give up, wouldn’t the newcomer list be a slap in the face?”

"I'm sorry, sir, I misunderstood. I have no further questions." Li Wei quickly apologized, though he was actually a little worried that things would develop this way.

Black Wolf nodded slightly, not caring much, and then looked at Hathaway.

"So, young lady, you're not planning to settle the bill?"

“Your Excellency, I still want to try, after all, this is my only chance,” Hathaway said resolutely.

Black Wolf nodded again and asked Ron, "And what about you?"

“My lord, I would also like to give it a try,” Ron said decisively.

"Hehe, there are three people left. Two of them don't want to settle the score. It seems they are determined to win. George, what about you? Night Owl just asked you. What are your thoughts? Or do you have any questions for me? I can answer them for you again."

Black Wolf looked at Li Wei again.

"Thank you, sir. I'd like to know if Hathaway and Ron's missions will affect my chances of winning the Rookie of the Year award? Or, could I know what their missions are?" Li Wei asked without hesitation. You made me ask that.

Black Wolf wasn't surprised. He stared at Li Wei and said, "Actually, the plot of the mission has basically been revealed by now. You should be able to guess it. That's right, it's the answer in your heart: Kaher City. Hathaway is pregnant with your child, which means she has the right to inherit. Ron will fall in love with Penny at first sight because she is the eldest daughter, and in her name, she theoretically also has the right to inherit."

"They both want to compete for the position of city lord of Kahe City. Whoever wins will own the territory. This is because they are currently undertaking a four-star lord mission."

"As for you, you're not even a three-star lord, so of course you pose no threat to them. No matter how powerful you are, even if you become a once-in-a-century new king and a three-star lord, you're not qualified to take over Kahe City. Everything has its own rules. When all the final bosses are defeated, or as long as you kill one of the final bosses, you'll immediately clear the game, and George in the story will die, because the real George has indeed already died."

"However, because your performance is so outstanding, it also means that whoever you choose to support is guaranteed to win."

"So that's why we've made such a big fuss tonight to meet you."

"Let me be frank, Ron is my man, I am the chief logistics officer of the logistics department, while Hathaway is Night Owl's man, Night Owl is the chief internal affairs officer of the internal affairs department. Although we have a relationship in our daily lives, we will definitely compete for such matters involving significant interests, but of course, it will not be the kind of competition that leads to a complete breakdown in relations."

"Don't worry, we won't break the rules. We just took this opportunity of non-mandatory settlement to say hello. It's because those two are such cowards. Four-star lords, they are powerful figures in the chaotic killing world, but they were actually beaten up by a newbie in the newbie mission. How embarrassing!"

"They deserve it!"

"However, the two department heads of ours came to you personally and told you all this in the hope that you can give us face. We will not interfere with who you choose to support. Even if you don't support anyone and just want to try to seize Kahe City, that's fine. You're young, you're energetic and adventurous. It's okay. Don't worry about us retaliating afterward. Basic humanistic care is the bottom line of the Alliance of Lords of the Heavens."

"In short, it's up to you to decide, or if you're in a good mood, just see who offers the higher price."

"Oh, one more thing, in twenty-four hours, eight four-star players will join the game. Four of them will be Ron's subordinates and friends, and four will be Hathaway's subordinates and friends. You can decide for yourself."

(End of this chapter)