“That’s…” Even with the keen eyesight of an Elemental Adept Magus, Victor found it quite hard to see so far away. About two kilometers away, a cluster of people huddled together, with faint trails of smoke rising from the forest below.

  “Eleanor, bring us closer to that area,” Victor instructed, pointing toward the group. “But don’t get too close. We don’t want to be spotted.” He actually wasn’t worried that the dirigible would be spotted by the people below because the sun was up in the sky, camouflaging the ship, but he thought that it was better to take some precautionary measures.

  “Aye, sir!” she responded, hands deftly moving over the controls.

  As they approached, the details of the group became clearer. Around thirty people, with more than half bound in chains. At first, Victor assumed they might be a band of criminals, but a closer look revealed men and women alike, most of them young.

  Slavers? Victor thought. Once, he had considered buying slaves to staff his academy as NPCs, but with his brainwashed former comrades, mercenaries, and the villagers already under his control, the notion had long since been dismissed.

  All of a sudden, a new mission prompt flickered into his mission tab, the Headmaster’s Journal. Opening it up revealed the new content of the mission:

  Mission: Punish the Slavers

  You have found a group of slavers who unjustly capture and enslave innocent people. As an honorable headmaster, it’s only right for you to lead your acolytes to uphold justice in this unfair and cruel world.

  Type: Side mission

  Reward: 1,000 academy points

  Crap… the System wants me to play hero. Victor rolled his eyes. Sure, there was nothing forcing him to accept this mission, as there would be no direct impact on the academy if he declined. But still… what should he do?

  For one, the group was situated in the middle of a forest. Though not quite within Thornwood Forest, the area was remote and isolated, with only a few scattered villages nearby. If he handled things quietly, there’d be no witnesses.

  Nevertheless, as previously stated, this dirigible wasn’t battle-ready. It had no magic barrier, no weapons — nothing that could be used for an aerial assault. If Victor wanted to intervene, he’d have to do it on foot. There was no easy way around it.

  As for the potential rewards…

  “One thousand academy points… plus the chance that some of them might join Thornwood Village if they have nowhere else to go,” he muttered under his breath.

  The benefits clearly outweighed the disadvantages. He could also use this as the first event for the players on this so-called “grand expedition” he’d set up. Right, the more Victor thought about it, the more logical this decision was. His role as the game’s developer was bleeding into his decision-making. After all, why not add a little drama to spice things up?

  Grinning to himself, Victor made up his mind.

  “Say, if I wanted the pla— I mean, my acolytes to attack the people below, do you have something that could help them out?” Victor casually asked. Parking the dirigible and getting off sounded tedious, and he was in the mood for a more creative approach.

  Eleanor’s eyes widened in shock, unable to believe his words. “Patron, you want to attack those innocent people down there?”

  “Only hypothetically.” Victor countered with a fact, “I’m pretty sure they’re slavers, and as far away from the word ‘innocent’ as you can get.”

  “Well,” she tapped her chin in thought, “there’s a way. I’ve actually prepped for something like this in case the ship got busted, and we needed a quick escape midair.”

  Victor raised an eyebrow. “Oh? What do you have in mind?”

  As her lips curled into a mischievous smile, she explained to him what might just be a truly “fun” solution to make this work.

  ***

  Sean shot his eyes open at the loud knocking on his door.

  “Dude, wake up!” came Chicken’s voice from outside. “Something interesting is happening right now.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked, a bit pissed at being suddenly woken up. When he was half asleep, he wasn’t awake in the real world since it was currently in the middle of the night on Earth. Instead, he was just asleep in both worlds.

  “I don’t know exactly,” he replied through the door. “But the dirigible’s stopped midair, and most of the players gathered in the corridor to check it out. Just get out here.”

  Curiosity won out over his annoyance. Sean quickly put on his acolyte robe and rushed outside, only to find a crowd of players pressed up against the windows, peering outside.

  “Why are those people being dragged in a line? Are they criminals?” Prominence asked, frowning at the sight below.

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Where?” Storm squinted, trying to make sense of the dim shapes below. “I can’t see anything clearly…”

  Sean pushed his way closer to the window and scanned the ground. Despite his eyesight being much sharper than his real-world vision, he could barely make out the scene. A group of figures moved through a small clearing, some huddled near burning campfires, which provided just enough light for him to spot what was happening.

  “They’re not criminals… they look like slaves,” Sean muttered to himself. It wasn’t that far-fetched when he thought about it.

  “Heh! Just so happens I came prepared for this!” Aphrodite smirked as he pulled out a slim tube that unfolded into a monocular telescope. He raised it to his eye and scanned the scene below. “Ooh, yep! They’re definitely slave traders. Most of the captives look like scrawny young men and women kidnapped from somewhere…”

  “What?!” someone shouted in dismay.

  “Should we… do something about it?” MsMelody asked with an uncertain voice.

  “It’s gotta be the main storyline for this expedition,” Storm chimed in confidently.

  Everyone exchanged knowing glances and nodded. It was too perfectly timed to be random. Otherwise, the dirigible wouldn’t have stopped in midair, hanging over a scene like this, unless it was part of some larger mission.

  At that moment, the headmaster’s voice appeared, echoing from the bronze pipes embedded in the walls. “Attention, everyone. Please gather on the deck of the dirigible. I have an important announcement to make.”

  The main storyline had started!

  Without a moment’s hesitation, the players scrambled toward the stairs, eager to see what would come next. Sean joined the rush, pushing his way through the narrow corridors until he emerged onto the deck. The moment he stepped outside, a powerful gust of wind nearly knocked him off his feet. With the dirigible hovering high above the ground, the wind was fierce, enough to send them flying. It was no wonder that the headmaster had forbidden them from going up here. Fortunately, they were all acolytes and could keep their balance just fine.

  “Wow!”

  Most of the players gasped in awe at the scene. The vast sky stretched out in every direction, and the ground below was barely visible through the clouds. The dirigible must be at least five thousand feet above the ground.

  As they marveled at the scene, the headmaster soon stepped onto the deck, his presence commanding instant attention. He surveyed the group of eager players before speaking in a calm but authoritative voice. “It seems everyone’s here. Before I tell you what needs to be done, there’s something important you should all know: The people you have seen below, they’re criminals — slavers, to be precise. They kidnap innocents and force them into a life of servitude for money.”

  A heavy silence followed as the weight of his words sunk in. After the tension had built up, the headmaster continued, “While these innocents don’t fall under our direct jurisdiction, we, as representatives of the academy, must uphold justice wherever we go. And if we want our academy’s name to echo far and wide, we can’t ignore this. So I ask you, my acolytes — who’s with me?”

  “Me, me, me!”

  “I’m in!”

  “Please pick me, Sir Astralium!”

  “Slavers? More like a bunch of experience points with loot!” Prominence added, his eyes already gleaming at the prospect of untold riches.

  The excitement was contagious. No one wanted to miss out on what could be their first real taste of adventure during the expedition. Some were looking like they were imagining the rewards, the loot, and the stories they’d bring back to the academy. Sean was no different. He could already see himself bragging to the others on the forum about this mission when they returned.

  The next moment, a two-star mission appeared to save the innocents and punish the slavers, and everyone accepted without a second thought.

  The headmaster smirked at their decision. “Good. Then each of you, put this on.” With a casual flick of his wrist, fifteen small backpacks materialized in a neat row on the cabin floor.

  Sean blinked. “What’s in there?”

  “Parachutes,” the headmaster answered simply.

  It was only a single word, but it sent a powerful ripple through the players, as if they’d all just been hit by a shockwave. Their expressions turned 180 degrees — some faces lit up with eager excitement, others frozen in shock, while the rest paled in fear. Sean himself felt a knot of nervous anticipation tightening in his stomach.

  “Holy shit! Are we going to skydive?!” Prominence was practically bouncing on his feet with a grin stretching from ear to ear.

  Meanwhile, Locktekei’s face was as white as a paper at the idea. “Mama, I’m scared of heights! Can I back out now?”

  “How can you call yourself a man if you’re afraid of a little challenge?” Chicken put a firm hand around Locktekei’s shoulder. “Weren’t you the one who was the first to shout about joining?”

  “That’s right. Besides, on the off chance we crash, we can always resurrect anyway. Not to mention that we probably will feel nothing at all.” Prominence gave Locktekei an exaggerated thumbs-up and a confident slap on the back while holding his other shoulder.

  Locktekei’s eyes darted between his captors in panic. “No! You guys are insane! Let me go, you psychos!” His voice cracked as he struggled, but Prominence and Chicken tightened their grips, practically hoisting him up between them. It was clear they had no intention of letting him escape the impending jump.

  “No way, buddy. We’re all in this together.” Chicken’s grip was as firm as iron.

  “You’re coming whether you like it or not,” Prominence added, his grin never faltering. “Besides, what’s the worst that could happen? You’ll be fine!”

  Locktekei’s struggles only seemed to amuse the pair even more.

  “Nooo!!” he wailed, but he might as well have been a chicken tied to the chopping block — completely helpless, as his fate was sealed by two stronger players who were determined to drag him into this mad leap of faith.

  Amidst the comedic scene, Sean and the rest of the group strapped on their parachutes, now ready to jump any time. The sight of the ground far below made Sean’s stomach do a flip, his body trembling ever so slightly, but he was not afraid. After all, this was just a game.

  With everyone lined up at the edge, the headmaster’s voice boomed through the wind. “Alright, my acolytes. The time has come. Jump when ready!”

  “Here we go! Game time, baby!” Storm shouted and leaped off the deck without a second thought, disappearing into the clouds below like a missile.

  “I bet a brute like you never skydived before,” Auralise mocked Butterfly who was standing nearby. “Watch how a real pro does it.” Without waiting for a response, she gracefully dove off the edge with fluid movement as if she had done this many times before.

  Her loyal servant, Domonique, followed immediately after with silence and calm expression — a stark contrast to their master.

  “That little twerp!” Provoked, Butterfly gritted her teeth and quickly followed suit, diving headfirst into the clouds.

  “I’m Superman!”

  “Leeeeroooy Jenkins!!”

  “Aah-eeh-ah-eeh-aaah-eeh-ah-eeh-aaah!”

  One by one, the players hurled themselves off the dirigible, each shout more ridiculous than the last. Even Locktekei, who tried desperately to avoid the jump, wasn’t spared. With grins plastered on their faces, Chicken and Prominence tossed him overboard.

  “Aaaaahhh! I hate you, Chicken! I hate you, Prominence!” Locktekei’s panicked screams echoed through the sky as he flailed wildly.

  Sean swallowed, watching them disappear below. His fingers tightened around the straps of his parachute. This was it — no turning back now. Then, without another thought, he pushed off the deck and plunged into the sky, the exhilarating rush of air hitting his face. He felt weightless as the clouds rushed up to meet him and adrenaline coursed through his veins.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYb43iY2Nk0