Chapter 354: Citizens of Crookes! Your Mayor Has Returned!

Even as the frontliners powered through the Elven Synchronized Intellect Nation (SIN), the newbie Players led by Simba had not even entered the dungeon.

After all, they were busy putting out fires everywhere.

The refugees of Crookes whom they evacuated had been rather compliant at first, but after the Tortoise Colossus had stopped moving for so long, they began to have other ideas.

Moreover, crowds who had just been ruled by terror and had yet to regain peace of mind were the easiest to incite into panic.

If not for the Players’ superhuman abilities that allowed them to temporarily suppress the spread of panic through strength, the refugees would probably be rioting now. “Aaaaaargh! Those bastards!”

After having evacuated Crookes, fight the Tortoise Colossus and suppress the spread of panic amongst the crowds in quick succession, Zazu had become quite upset in his fatigue. “Can’t they just behave for a bit? Leave this place and go to another city if they’re so afraid that the tortoise would move again! What use is there flocking around and making noises!?”.

“They are too weak. That’s why they are afraid to run away, and they are flocking because of their fear.” On the other hand, Nala appeared much more rational, although she was quite tired as well since clerics like her had to heal the other players (Most Players’ healing skills are ineffective towards non-believers of the God of Games).

“And we can’t give up since we decided to save them from the start, right? Or wouldn’t our hard work before all go to waste?” Simba flashed a pained smile.

“We could just burn those troublemakers into ashes!” Zazu exclaimed, emboldened in his frustration and raising his magic staff for an iron-blooded repression.

“That’s the last resort.”

Simba didn’t say anything saintly like ‘murder is wrong’, since a person who grew up in the slums like him knew better than anyone that a stable environment would favor the survival of the many, in contrast to personal freedom or even right to life most of the time. “And before we have to go that far, know that massacring citizens would seriously hurt the reputation of the Church of Games… Uncle Mustafa would skin you when he hears about it later.”

At Simba’s words, Zazu had to lower his magic staff unhappily and sit down on a boulder nearby. That was when a little girl holding a bear doll stumbled towards them.

“Hello!” She said gingerly as she went to Nala. “Thank you, you saved my mother.”

“I only helped bandage her.” Nala recognized the girl and smiled tenderly. “You should hurry back to your mother.”

As an orphan like her brother Zazu and living through hardships, Nala naturally sympathized children like the young girl and hoped that they would cherish their parents.

“This is George. It has always been with me. I hope it could bring you good luck.” The young girl then handed Nana the little bear doll she had been holding preciously.

Simba felt pleased at the sight, feeling that it was worth it and not a waste of effort to save so many people.

“It’s alright, it would want to be with you more.” Nala declined gently instead of taking the doll, however, and stroked the little girl’s head instead.

The girl’s hands shook just then.

“I’ll be very sad if you don’t take it… is George too dirty? I’m sorry, I don’t have anything else…” She murmured, swallowing: Nala accepted the doll helplessly since the young girl had put it that way.

“Thank you. I’ll treasure it.” She said seriously.

The girl smiled in return, before turning and slipping into the nearby crowd.

However, that smile was rather abnormal for some reason that Simba felt a sense of déjà vu.

He therefore turned to look at the doll Nala was holding, casting an Appraisal on it by instinct.

His face dropped in the next split second.

“Throw away the doll, Nala!”

“What? But…”

Before Nala could react, Simba had already rushed to her and punched the bear doll into the air!

At virtually the same time, the doll abruptly bloated as sharp spikes shot out of its body to attack Nala, but it was too late.

When it hit the ground, it continued bloating until it reached the size of a real bear.

At the same time, a HP bar and a red name appeared over its head.

[Special swampman: claw bear form]

The citizens nearby were frightened like Nala, just as Zazu was left uncertain what was happening in his surprise. Only Simba attacked immediately, killing the special swampman even before it could react!

While the special swampman appeared capable of changing to a smaller form and even imitate an object, it also decreased in level as a result and was probably just a little stronger than a normal person. It wouldn’t have a good chance against trained warriors, and newbie Players like Simba would be able to instakill it.

Their objective was clear, too: they would attack Simba and the other newbie Players since they were the ones keeping the peace amongst the refuges of Crookes. And since Simba was their leader, there would only be confusion if something happened to his group! “Damn it, find that girl!” Simba flung away the puddle on his blade and barked at the others.

There were quick responses to his command too.

And soon enough, the Players found the girl behind a nearby boulder… That is, her corpse.There was a gash that stretched down her chest to her stomach, with every last innard gone. She was pretty much just limbs, head, and skin-an utter scene of horror!

“No wonder her name didn’t go red when we were looking at her… some parasite was controlling her…” Simba muttered in frustration, leaving her remains to be buried by the other players. While there was no telling what those things’ actual objective were in mixing themselves amongst the objectives, there was little doubt what they were.

“Hostiles.” Simba didn’t hesitate to say the word. “Search and destroy!”

“But won’t the citizens think that we are killing innocents? We might cause a riot too…” A Player said hesitantly.

They need a strong presence who could control all the refugees and snuff out their doubt.

But where would they get such a person?

That was when an old but spirited voice spoke out from the distance.

“Citizens of Crookes! Your mayor has returned!”