I've Become the King of Villains in the Game

Amber City.

Train Station.

Gan Ziwen and Honey Fool stepped out of the train station's great gate, looking at the bustling crowd, and let out a sigh of relief.

"We finally made it."

Gan Ziwen said.

"Yeah, this game is too realistic; we've been on the train for nine days... Haha, luckily we can skip time by sleeping; otherwise, it'd be unbearably boring."

Honey Fool laughed.

"It truly is realistic; I almost suffocated on the train... Not having had a bath for so long, all the other passengers stank, and we've turned into 'walking feces'."

Gan Ziwen frowned and tugged at his clothes helplessly.

"Let's go, let's find a hotel to wash up first; I can't stand it anymore."
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"Good idea."

Honey Fool followed Gan Ziwen, leaving the spot and slowly walking away along the main thoroughfare.

However, they didn't notice that not far behind them, near the gate, another group of players had emerged.

It was Rotten Persimmon and his companions.

They all had rather unpleasant expressions, and no one spoke. They silently followed Rotten Persimmon, heading straight out of the train station.

"We're going to the Inner City District first... The Red Apple Church's church is there. If you want to join the church, you can try the method I suggested along the way."

Rotten Persimmon said in a deep voice, sighing to himself.

These past few days on the train were like another nightmare for him. The first was being corpse-camped by Jack, too scared to log on.

The nightmare on the train was getting killed three times in a row for no apparent reason! Each time, it was that guy named "Alec" who killed him in his sleep.

During the train's journey, logging off was not an option, otherwise it would be considered "leaving transport" and would result in being sent straight back to Emerald Town train station.

And like all normal people, game characters need to eat and rest; enduring without sleep was simply not feasible.

The moment he let his guard down and dozed off, he would be killed.

The Resurrection Point was automatically bound to the carriage, often Rotten Persimmon didn't even see his death notification before realizing he had already died once.

These days were tormenting, constantly struggling with himself, and with the eerie, damnable, that wandering bard.

The rest of the team had the same experiences, each having died three times in succession.

Luckily, a fourth death did not come.

Perhaps it was because the train had left the haunting vicinity of that bard, or possibly it was the gods' mercy that allowed them to cling to that last life and successfully reach Amber City.

Otherwise, being stuck in Resurrection Cooldown, having to wait five in-game days to log on again, would have been too torturous.

Rotten Persimmon and his group felt extremely fortunate.

As they walked, they looked at the road signs, used them to unlock the panel map, and directly headed to the inevitable pathway to the Inner City District—"Amber Bridge".

To their astonishment, they discovered that there were quite a lot of Guardians at the bridge checkpoint, and they were exceedingly strict.

One by one, travelers lined up for inspections and questioning; there were also seven or eight doctors dressed in black leather coats, standing to the side conducting examinations.

They wore masks similar to gas masks on their faces, resembling crow beaks, and held black ebonwood canes to touch those being inspected while maintaining distance; another person was taking notes with pen and paper.

"It seems the plague outside the city is severe, leading to the establishment of quarantine checkpoints here."

Rotten Persimmon said solemnly.

He went to the back of the long line of people waiting and queued up, with the other team members hurrying to catch up.

When it was almost their turn, Rotten Persimmon noticed several recruitment posters plastered on a nearby wall.

The first one essentially stated that anyone joining the Security Office's "Plague Control Team" to help eliminate plague-madmen, sewer-infested animals, and other beasts could receive an Amber City residency certificate, Inner City District access permit, and some monetary rewards.

The other recruitment announcements were similar, all posted by various official institutions, and it was evident that they were in great need of manpower.

"Sir, please present your identification."

Three Guardians stood in front of Rotten Persimmon, the leader speaking.

Rotten Persimmon presented his identification provided by the Red Apple Church, which listed his legal status as a "Church Guardian".

The Guardian glanced at it, nodded, and returned it to Rotten Persimmon. Yet the way the three Guardians looked at him became somewhat strange.

From their gazes, Rotten Persimmon sensed a hint of surprise and confusion, unsure why they exhibited such emotions.

Shortly after, under the crow-masked doctor's direction, he extended his finger for a blood draw. A hand clad in a black leather glove pried open his eyelids and lips for a thorough inspection, and only then was he allowed to pass into the Inner City District.

However, his traveling companions were not so fortunate; without proof of identity, they had to part ways temporarily.

"You can check out the notices on the wall and participate in the official recruitment by completing some tasks, and that way you can obtain an identification proof."

Rotten Persimmon suggested.

"No other choice, we'll have to do that... Brother Rotten Persimmon, we'll contact you if there's anything."

The others looked at each other and said with a sense of resignation.

"Alright, do it as quickly as you can."

Rotten Persimmon nodded.

Watching his "younger brothers" depart, Rotten Persimmon noted that a few more players had appeared in the line and, due to lack of identification, were turned away from the bridge.

In the end, all of these players were attracted to the recruitment posters on the wall and promptly signed up to participate.