Chapter 19 Because You Are Essentially a Good Person

Although many people are unwilling to admit or are unaware, in fact, most people have a certain dark side to their hearts, whether they're players or NPCs.

For example, in the world of "Iron and Fire," there are often NPCs who issue quests and then deny payment afterward or even attempt to eliminate the player who completed the quest.

But players have undying bodies, so why would they be afraid of this? If you try to mess with me, of course, I'll fight back. However, constantly being tricked by NPCs while trying to complete quests is quite bothersome.

However, there's an organization's NPCs that definitely won't scheme against players, and that's within the territory of the Holy Solomon Empire: the "Blade Warriors," composed of Transcendents who wish to serve their Lord with sword in hand. They possess the "Emperor's Guard" bloodline sequence, with the first in line being Justice X.

Any NPC who joins, whether they were murderous bandits or petty thieves, as soon as they drink Justice X, they would all transform into knights of high moral standing.

Their word is their bond, with no conspiracies and no bullying the weak. They definitely give players the promised rewards, and if a quest's difficulty is 100 points, they won't claim it's only 99. They would even proactively offer more money if players complain about excessive difficulty. They're hailed as the shining example among quest-giving NPCs—friends of players.

Even more fascinating is that this change in character isn't gradual but rather occurs in the instant that the Magic Potion takes effect, as if slashing away their inner darkness in one clean cut.

Aske still remembers a quest named "One Drunken Night," in which a drunken NPC who had just joined the Blade Warriors, because the knightly code didn't allow him to drink excessively, reluctantly asked the players to find fine wine for him.

But when players brought the wine, the guy, with the bottle raised to his lips, still couldn't drink it in the end, his face twisted in pain, conflict, and helplessness. Thus the fame of Justice X spread among players, who nicknamed it the "Honesty" Potion, implying "After you down this milk, you'll be an honest person."

According to some adventurous players, after drinking Justice X, your game character can no longer steal, provoke trouble, or kill without cause, nor can they break into an NPC's home without permission. Even players who loved to swear found that even aggressive words were censored, such as "What are you looking at" and "What about it?", which would come out as "Bleep!," leading to many disgruntled complaints from uncomfortable players.

Of course, some got used to it afterward and felt it added a sense of immersion.

"Ah, I don't feel anything," Eleanor said, puzzled.

"How can you not feel anything?" Aske asked in surprise. "Don't you feel like 'Although I don't know why, I've been forced to cleanse my mind,' or 'I had no choice before, but now I want to be a good person'?"

"No," Eleanor replied honestly.

"If someone on the street asks you for donations under the guise of 'My child is seriously ill and needs help,' what would you do?" Aske asked, recalling a classic online psychological test.

"Give them money," Eleanor blinked, "depending on how much I have."

"What if the other person is a scammer?" Aske quickly followed up. "There's actually no sick child at all, and they're just swindling people under this pretext to squander the donations?"

"If I could be 100% sure he's a scammer, then of course I wouldn't donate," Eleanor said matter-of-factly, as if it were obvious, "But even if there's a 1% chance it's true, why wouldn't I donate? Maybe I'd save the life of an innocent child, right?"

"I see," Aske sighed. "So you've been a good person from the start."

"Because my values have always been right, even after taking the Justice X Magic Potion, my nature hasn't changed at all?" Medea mused.

"That's great," Nora said with a touch of guilt, believing she wouldn't donate in such a situation. "Ellie, you truly are a kind-hearted person."

"Although I'm not sure if it's just my imagination, I feel like you guys are mocking me?" Eleanor said suspiciously.

"No, this isn't mockery. People like you are becoming rarer in this brutal era," Aske said, stroking his chin, reflecting. "There was a time when I, too, was a pure-minded youth. How did I become so dark and suspicious as I am now?"

He hummed thoughtfully, then turned to Nora and instructed, "Nora, pay attention not to let Eleanor handle the team's money. I'm afraid she'll be swindled out of all her funds in the future."

"Got it," Nora nodded.

"Wait a minute!" Eleanor exclaimed in embarrassment. "Why have you suddenly started looking down on me? Don't look at me with pity!"

Aside from influencing one's nature, Justice X also provided Eleanor with a certain degree of Physical Power and Spiritual Power, significantly enhancing her Six-dimensional Attributes. Another notable point is the "Evil Strike" ability. According to Eleanor's own account, based on the knowledge she automatically acquired, this ability gave her an even stronger power to strike against evil. When confronting evil enemies, her Six-dimensional Attributes would receive a significant boost.

"The question is, how do you determine who's evil?" Medea voiced her concern, wondering if she herself could be classified as a target for "Evil Strike."

"Conscience is the guide if I remember correctly," Aske said. "The premise is that Eleanor needs to sincerely believe that the enemy is evil, and then the ability of the Evil Strike will work on her."

"Hey! What if I use the ability of Mind I to influence Eleanor's mind," Medea's eyes lit up as she spoke, "As long as we make her believe that the enemy in front of her is evil, then regardless of who she faces, couldn't she always benefit from 'Evil Strike'?"

"You're a fucking genius," Aske said with a laugh and a cry. Players had indeed explored this method before, nicknamed the "Justice Warrior Sleepwalking Technique" or "Hypnosis Flow," but it wasn't until much later in the storyline that it was discovered. Medea, this woman, had no trouble coming up with such a cunning ploy the second she heard about the Justice X trait, clearly showing that she was a master of intrigue.

With her mouth half-open, Eleanor seemed not to have thought of this possibility at all. She hesitantly said,

"But... wouldn't using Mind Power to influence the judgment of right and wrong go against the very essence of justice?"

"What is the essence of justice, pray tell?" Medea asked with disdain.

"Justice is…" Eleanor tried to speak, only to be interrupted by Medea who said authoritatively, "The essence of justice is to defeat the enemy! Survival gives you a say, what kind of justice can the dead have? If justice is dead, you could call it evil, and it would become evil, as if it could stand up and argue back?"

Eleanor didn't retort but her expression clearly showed dissent.

"All right, now in our team we still have two people who lack magic potions," Aske quickly tried to smooth things over by changing the subject, "Medea, how is your magic potion material coming along?"

"I haven't collected the menarche yet," Medea said with tears streaming down her face. Other Spiritual Materials were manageable, even if the sources were far, as there were always traders selling them. However, this bizarre item depended on the right timing. To avoid making a spectacle, Medea secretly contacted dozens of impoverished families in the city, those with daughters around 12 or 13, bribing their parents with a hefty sum—their first menses could come anytime, only heaven knew when.

Perhaps it would come tomorrow? Or perhaps not until next year? It was entirely unpredictable.

"Nora's Life I, we've already gathered the recipe and main ingredients last night," Aske said, withholding the details of last night's battle but presenting the recipe for Life I:

-Main Ingredient-

Three Flowers of the Eden Tree

-Subsidiaries-

Two Eden Fruit Seeds

A spoonful of Corfu Island Olive Oil

200ml of Rakija

-Processing-

Take the Rakija (must contain the following 10 fruits when brewing: plums, pears, apricots, peaches, raspberries, citrus, apples, cherries, bananas, dates; no honey allowed), add a spoonful of Corfu Island Olive Oil, crush two Eden Fruit Seeds and mix in. Finally, place three Flowers of the Eden Tree with the blooms facing up and let them sink naturally. Once the petals change color, drink the liquid.

"We already have the Eden Fruit and olive oil," Nora said, surprised.

"The main material, the Flower of the Eden Tree, can be substituted with the Extraordinary trait from Life I," Aske pondered, "We only need to find the Rakija among the subsidiaries. We'll have to check the city's taverns for that."

"Also, Peggy and Eleanor, the two of you have only recently advanced to level 1, and you haven't fully digested the Extraordinary Power within," Aske looked at the two, "You must go through real combat training to convert it into corresponding Physical Power and Spiritual Power. I'll go out with Nora today to gather subsidiaries, and you two can go to the training ground under the hotel we visited last time for sparring. Medea, you watch over them and make sure there are no accidents or injuries."

"Oh, sure," Medea replied absentmindedly.

So everyone left the house to go their separate ways. Peggy, Eleanor, and Medea headed to the training ground while Aske and Nora went in search of subsidiaries in the city's vineyards. Across from the ancestral home, a Church spy yawned as he watched the group leave.

"This noble young man has quite the stamina, huh? Managed to bring over four girls for the night?" the spy mumbled as he wrote down the details on his report. He knew, though, that this was just routine. Unless the other side blatantly used Extraordinary Power or something mutant happened in the house, his surveillance reports would likely go unnoticed, probably tossed into some pile of scrap papers.

Boredly twirling his pencil, the spy rested his hands on the windowsill of his lookout point, lazily squinting his eyes at the now empty abode and doorway.