My players are too fierce!

The lobby of the tavern.

Roland placed a fist-sized crystal ball, clear and flawless, on the fireplace.

Then, they thoughtfully added a few lines of notes to the panel.

Echoing Crystals: Doomsday (Part 1)

[Strategists: Hachimede, Kashima First Snow, Rain Night Swordsman, David Day, Colorful Toad, Tentacle King Awei]

[Number of playthroughs: 2]

It can be considered a kind of Hall of Fame, where later players will see their names.

The last vestige of obsession within this fragment has been extracted, forming the two obsession crystals in his hand.

This is the most important task players do in dungeons—purifying their obsessions.

In Roland's view, this is perhaps the most important approach for players to conquer dungeons.

Marcus was hampered by command errors, resulting in the loss of the position, the massacre of civilians, and the pointless deaths of his comrades.

The common people, clinging to a faint hope, waited until their deaths for someone to lend a helping hand and save them;

While Mother Elizabeth and the nameless doctor likely didn't die there in real history, the former was trapped by her departure, and the latter by the unfinished masterpiece.

The resentment deep within the player's obsession was discovered and ignited.

Struggle, aid, sacrifice, devotion...

Even according to the system's predictions, the fate of those who held fast to the church was to be isolated and helpless, ultimately destroyed by unknown terror.

But at least, they saw a glimmer of hope.

[Dungeon rewards are being calculated...]

[Obtained 6 Small Obsession Crystals]

[Recipe obtained: Potion of Wrath]

[Gain Personality Echo (Marcus Bloodblade)]

[Gain spell: Light of Sanctuary]

The recipe for the potion is self-explanatory; its effects have already been tested by the Swordsman in the dungeon, and the amplification is quite noticeable.

Unfortunately, the swordsman's foundation was too weak, and even with advanced technology, he was still cut into pieces by the tentacle-like Marcus.

Compared to the prototype, this version no longer requires Obsession and Wrath as materials, and the side effects have been significantly improved. It will not burn to death, but it can only take effect for three minutes, and the sanity resistance has been reduced to 50%.

Roland actually felt that, aside from the cost, the prototype was more practical, as players could be resurrected even if they died from the fire, and the side effects would disappear after one resurrection.

There were gains and losses.

As for the Personality Echo, the system explains it as the personality Marcus had in the last moments before his death, a sum of memories, humanity, skills, and the like.

Could it be considered the soul?

Unfortunately, there aren't any containers or similar things available right now, but perhaps we'll be able to use them in the future.

The remaining spell is the same as the one in the dungeon.

【Light of Sanctuary】

[Active Effect: Centered on the fire, greatly weakens enemies marked as evil, demons, madmen, or aliens that enter the area illuminated by the fire.]

[Passive Effect: Slightly increases the suppressive effect of firelight on enemies labeled as evil spirits, demons, madmen, and aliens.]

[Cost: Fuel consumption rate increases by 300% after activation]

The effect is quite good.

We just can't afford it.

Roland rubbed his temples.

Once the dungeon exploration progress reaches 100%, you can still enter and take a look, but you will no longer get Obsession Crystals.

This reward should be enough for him to last until he discovers a new mine.

should?

Hmm, he needs to get the player up first.

A quick glance at the Earth's time reveals that there's less than an hour until dawn. It'll be soon.

Snapped--

Just then, a figure suddenly fell from the ceiling and landed on the sofa opposite Roland.

"Ouch..."

The person who arrived was Emma.

The cat ears on its head swayed back and forth, just like its owner, who was still dazed from being hit.

"...How are you?"

"...A normal side effect of illegal spirit world travel, not a big problem!"

She rubbed her head, her tone firm.

It's probably because he landed headfirst when he fell.

Roland thought to himself, "I didn't expose Emma."

"Hey, where's my bag?"

Just as she was about to take out the goods she was carrying, she realized that her bag seemed to be missing.

bang——

A large, bulging bag landed a few seconds later from where Emma had appeared.

It hit her face with a "duang" sound, knocking her out of the game.

"Alright, alright," Roland waved his hand and pulled the five players back first.

The cost of reviving this time is a bit higher.

Because several players, especially the Swordsman, had their cognitive filters overloaded, either all of their work had to be stopped for the day, or more ashes had to be spent to speed up the repairs.

【Child of the Moon】

[Rank: 7]

[Type: Madmen, Flesh and Blood]

What remains is a long string of question marks.

It's the most terrifying monster Roland has seen in recent times, and it's estimated that it won't be surpassed for a long time.

Hopefully, this won't leave any psychological trauma on those guys.

"Holy crap! That's awesome, bro!"

Ah Wei's mouth took shape first, and when he opened his mouth, it was filled with overwhelming joy.

She dares to say that she has never seen such stimulating tentacles in any work, whether healthy or unhealthy!

The texture, the grain—if she hadn't been killed off by the plot, she definitely would have wanted to touch it and experience it.

Upon hearing this, Hachimed quickly covered Awei's mouth. What if this brat said something outrageous and lowered the favorability of the faction's boss?

He's a Hammerhead, a supposedly strategy-driven player, and he hasn't even changed jobs yet!

This is absolutely not allowed!

"The great Night's Watchman, the guardian of the fire in Deadpool, the spiritual leader of all Fireflies..."

Hachimedes stood at attention before Roland with a solemn expression and loudly recited the title he had made up for Roland on the spot.

What if, what if this NPC falls for it?

Taking pictures of AI's horses is not considered flattery!

"No, no, no! There's no room for so many people here!"

Roland was so embarrassed he felt like he was digging his toes out of a three-bedroom apartment, so he quickly called a halt to Hakimed.

He then put all the Obsession Crystals in the shop and gave players enough merit points to exchange for exactly three of them.

We've also added the [Potion of Wrath], but it's currently out of stock.

On the one hand, it tells players that their actions in dungeons and the game have positive feedback, that they can build shops and change NPCs, making them feel more accomplished.

On the other hand, it's like a carrot dangling in front of a mule, constantly tempting players to keep playing.

Of course, the most important thing right now is to divert Hakimes' attention and stop him from flattering us!

"Waaah..."

Emma, ​​who had just fainted for a short while, with dark circles under her eyes, groggily placed the bag that had been pressing on her face on the table.

Bang!

The force was so great that Roland even felt a little sorry for his own table!

Of course, this also reflects that the package is very substantial.

Hearing the commotion, the five players quietly gathered around, curiously examining what interesting things the little kitten girl had brought.

Snapped!

A flintlock pistol was slammed heavily on the table, along with three tin boxes containing paper packets of ammunition, totaling 60 rounds of ammunition, which were also placed next to it.

Hakimed's eyes suddenly lit up.

He sensed it; this was his signature weapon!

Swordsmen like Kashima and David Day are most likely mages...

He is the only owner of this gun, and he can only be the owner!

He's the only one who's free!

Blanched!

Kashima scratched his head. Seeing Hachimedes's expression, he decided it wouldn't be right to cut in line and beg Emma to help him translate "The Plague Doctor's Notebook".

Roland, watching the herd of cattle and horses surrounding Emma, ​​suddenly remembered a serious question.

Why hasn't the colorful toad come back dead yet?