"Tch, how annoying. Kitsune, more fire!"

Siegfried shouted to Kitsune as he saw several Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts attempting to break through the flames.

"Got it!"

Kitsune responded, unleashing a fresh burst of golden flames into the fiery ring. The fire roared higher, and the baboons screamed as the flames scorched their fur, leaving blistering burns all over their bodies.

The Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts glared at Kitsune with hatred and rushed forward, intent on tearing the fox apart. But they stopped abruptly when several alluring female baboons emerged from the golden flames.

"Ook! Ook, ook, ook!

The Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts instantly shifted from combat mode to a state of infatuation. Their angry eyes turned into pink hearts as they approached the golden flames, entranced, unaware that it was an illusion created by Kitsune.

Siegfried could not help but marvel at Kitsune's intelligence and skill. Not only was he incredibly fast, but his techniques and cleverness also surpassed many players. Siegfried decided that if he ever got a pet, it would have to be as capable as Kitsune.

"Too bad your underlings won't be able to help you now,"

Siegfried smirked. Despite the Red-bottomed Baboon Beast King's massive size, its level was not particularly high. The true threat came from its over three hundred minions.

Roarrr!

The Red-bottomed Baboon Beast King roared and spat a black liquid from its huge mouth. Siegfried easily dodged it, realizing it was a foul-smelling mud that extinguished part of Kitsune's golden flames.

The Red-bottomed Baboon Beast King grinned and prepared to spit more mud, but Siegfried anticipated this. He swiftly slashed its stomach multiple times with his knight profession's continuous thrust skill. The repeated blows to the previous wound caused its entrails to spill onto the ground. Siegfried did not give it a chance to recover; he climbed up its body and drove his sword deep into its chest.

The Red-bottomed Baboon Beast King's anguished cries ceased immediately as it collapsed within the ring of fire. Its body quickly caught fire, just like its minions, who continued walking into the flames, believing female baboons awaited them.

Siegfried quickly gathered the loot from the fallen Red-bottomed Baboon Beast King and hurriedly left the battlefield.

The black smoke rose high into the sky, visible even to players far away. Firetail alerted its master, who was traveling below, although they had already noticed. The path they took to Longshan City was wide open, with no tall trees obstructing the view.

"Who could have done that?"

Oliang asked, noticing the black smoke in the distance.

"Not sure, but there are rumors in the public communication channel that the field ahead is overrun by Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts. No players have been through there,"

Draco informed the group.

"So who started the fire? It's not like those monkeys can light a fire!"

Peach Blossom frowned and complained.

"It might be Kitsune and Siegfried. They went ahead of us quite a while ago,"

Lidded Wet Trash Can suggested.

"Yeah, let's hurry up. I can't wait to see Chang in her child form!"

Valentine said with a bright smile, looking excited at the thought of holding child-sized Chang Long.

"Chang Long must have been really cute as a kid, right?"

Aden, walking beside Valentine, asked.

"Yes, with big round eyes and always acting haughty. Chang was a spoiled young lady, always pampered. Talking about it makes me nostalgic for the first time I met her!"

Valentine replied, making everyone eager to see Chang Long in her child form, especially Peach Blossom, who seemed even more excited than Valentine.

"Wow! Master Chang must be super cute and cuddly as a child. I can't wait to meet her."

Peach Blossom imagined the three-year-old Chang Long with sparkling eyes.

"Yeah, she must be adorable and huggable!"

Oliang nodded, causing Peach Blossom to turn and glare at him instantly.

"W-What? Why are you looking at me like that, Peach Blossom?"

Oliang asked nervously and quickly moved to hide behind Wet Trash Can.

"I can't wait to see master too. She must be less stern as a child!"

Kimhant said cheerfully.

"Tch! If they were traveling faster, you'd never catch up, Kimhant. Besides, Master is mine!"

Peach Blossom snapped at Kimhant, who, startled, also moved to hide behind Wet Trash Can, along with Oliang.

"Why are you so grumpy, Peach Blossom? Are you jealous of Chang Long or..."

Draco trailed off, glancing at Oliang, who was chatting with Kimhant and Wet Trash Can behind them.

Peach Blossom did not respond, her face sullen as she walked ahead of Draco, still fuming. She did not even know why she was so upset—whether it was because everyone was admiring her beloved Master Chang or because Oliang had called Chang Long cute.

"Peach Blossom's mood swings are intense,"

Kimhant whispered to Oliang.

"Yeah, I don't get it either, especially since we all know Chang Long is a girl,"

Oliang whispered back.

"She's growing up, I suppose!"

Wet Trash Can nodded knowingly.

"Hurry up, you guys! Didn't you say you want to see Master Chang soon?"

Peach Blossom shouted back at the three trailing behind, making them jump and quicken their pace, still confused about why Peach Blossom was mad at them.

Siegfried and Kitsune had barely escaped the baboon gang when the baboons realized and started chasing them in a large group. The two men tried to pick up their pace, but the fatigue from their previous battle made it hard to completely shake off their pursuers.

"This is bad, Kitsune. We're about to get surrounded again!"

Siegfried said, his voice tense as he saw the Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts closing in from the front as well.

"We need to move faster. Can you keep up, Master Siegfried?"

Kitsune asked, concerned.

"I have no choice but to keep up. Whoa!"

Siegfried shouted just as a Red-bottomed Baboon Beast lunged at him with its mouth wide open.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out from a distance, and the baboon fell dead instantly. With close inspection, one would see a small smoking hole in the center of its head.

"What was that!"

Kitsune turned to look in the direction of the sound and saw a small figure with wings about eight hundred meters away, waving at them.

"Who's that?"

Siegfried asked, following Kitsune's gaze and seeing the child.

"I think... that child might be master. Look, Davy-chan and Hisa-chan are standing there too,"

Kitsune observed. Meanwhile, the gunshots continued, taking down any Red-bottomed Baboon Beasts that lunged at them.

"Oh!"

Siegfried exclaimed, peering at the child again and noticing a resemblance to the older Chang Long. The two men then changed direction and ran towards the child.

As they ran, they were continuously covered by the mysterious sniper that they could not see. When they finally reached Chang Long, they still had to keep running until they were safely out of their baboon pursuers.

Once they were clear, Kitsune and Siegfried collapsed to the ground, exhausted. They had rushed to catch up with Chang Long, fought countless baboons, and ended with a desperate dash across the plains.

"How are you doing, Kitsune!"

Chang Long asked, approaching her pet in human form with concern.

"I'm... fine, master,"

Kitsune quickly replied but was surprised when an unfamiliar person handed him a water bottle.

"This is Jane. She helped me out,"

Chang Long introduced, noticing Kitsune and Siegfried's puzzled expressions. Siegfried smiled at Chang Long's childish, drawling speech which he had to listen to attentively to catch what she was saying. Chang Long shot him a sideways glare and pouted.

"This didn't happen to you. So, don't mock me!"

"Aww! I just think it's really cute, Chang Long!"

Siegfried hurriedly explained, seeing that Chang Long was annoyed with him.

"Tch! Why did you follow Kitsune here?"

Chang Long continued to pout, her cheeks tinged with pink.

"I was worried. So worried that I had to come along!"

Siegfried replied with a warm, gentle smile, making Chang Long press her lips together, trying to hide her embarrassment.

Jane watched their interaction with interest. She had always assumed Chang Long was male, but the seemingly flirtatious exchange made her reconsider.

"Is Chang Long a girl or a boy?"

"Master is a girl, but people often mistake her for a boy,"

Kitsune replied with a smile. Jane was momentarily captivated by the little fox before she noticed Hero approaching with his gun slung over his shoulder.

Siegfried eyed Hero suspiciously. He saw that this man was joking with Chang Long as if they had known each other for a long time while they were resting. They started introducing themselves and discussing their professions, and Siegfried learned that these two friends were both snipers.

"Isn't that profession a bit of a cheat? The weapons have more destructive power than bows and can shoot from much farther away,"

Siegfried commented after hearing Hero and Jane talk about their sniper profession, while Chang Long sat comfortably on Kitsune's lap.

"Not at all. If you knew what it takes to get this job, you wouldn't want to be a sniper. The guns and ammo aren't sold in the system shops or even player shops. We have to complete quests or hunt specific beasts to get them!"

Hero replied cheerfully.

"Is it that hard? Where do you get these quests then? From the NPC that gives out the profession?" Siegfried asked, clearly intrigued.

"For the guns, you need to get them from the profession NPC or Gun Smith NPC only. The bullets can be acquired from the quest buildings in each city. These quests are specific to the profession. Luckily, you can take these quests an unlimited number of times, but they are randomly assigned. The difficulty usually scales with your level, but it often depends more on the quality and type of bullets you need,"

Hero explained with enthusiasm, as it was not often that someone would be interest in their stories. He was unaware that Siegfried's real aim was to pull him away from Chang Long.

"A Gun Smith! This game has that kind of NPC?"

Siegfried asked in surprise, and even Chang Long turned to listen attentively.

"Yes! But we haven't found him yet. I only know about him because my profession NPC told me,"

Jane replied. Hero turned back to teasing Chang Long playfully, making Siegfried struggle to hide his irritation.

"And... how hard is it to get the sniper profession!"

Siegfried asked through gritted teeth, keeping his eyes on Hero and Chang Long.

"Well, it's challenging but not impossible. If you have experience with archery, it might be easier. The quest tests your concentration and accuracy. In the end, you must shoot a target several hundred meters away with a real gun. If you pass, you get the profession. If you fail, you have to wait a whole day to retake the test,"

Hero turned to explained.

"Someone with no archery background can't take the test then?"

Siegfried speculated.

"They can, as long as they are accurate. But that's the second phase of the test. First, they must complete a random quest. Jane and I got lucky and received the same quest, so we could help each other,"

Hero explained further.

"What was the quest?"

Chang Long asked.

"Hunting wild geese,"

Jane replied.

"That makes sense. It's a good training exercise because these animals lives in flock and are highly alert. Any disturbance and they all fly away quickly,"

Kitsune nodded.

"Yeah, we tried many times before we could complete the quest with just bows and throwing knives,"

Jane recalled.

"Hehehe, Jane is a hidden weapons godfather,"

Hero laughed, telling Siegfried. Both Siegfried and Kitsune stared at Jane in astonishment. Did Hero just say godfather!

"Did you say... godfather?"

Siegfried asked again, thinking he might have misheard.

"Yes! You can't tell just by looking, but Jane is a guy with the heart of a girl,"

Hero replied, pulling Chang Long onto his lap.

"You can't do that!"

Siegfried shouted, forgetting himself. Hero and Chang Long, who was struggling to get free, turned to look at him in surprise. Jane smacked her friend on the head, furious that he had revealed her secret in front of the handsome duo!

"Uh... I mean, Chang Long is fine with Kitsune. Besides, she doesn't like being forced..." Siegfried muttered, blushing as everyone stared at him.

"Oh, I know how stubborn Chang Long can be. When we shared a tent, she ran... Are you okay?" Hero stopped mid-sentence, shocked by Siegfried's murderous aura and glare.

"Shared. A. Tent. You say!" Siegfried hissed, his fists clenched, eyes locked on Hero, causing everyone to shiver.

"Y-You're not saying you're jealous of me and Chang Long, are you?" Hero asked softly, quickly handing Chang Long back to Kitsune.

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