Gamers of the Underworld

Spiral-shaped slopes surrounded the busy construction site. In a square pit, there were thousands of workers, most of whom were warriors of Eternal Kingdom. Many of the warriors were unable to enter the construction site and were queuing up.

 A huge fat Hamster who was wearing a yellow safety helmet walked towards the sentry tower located in the middle of the pit, which had loudspeakers mounted on top of it. It was a common building found in every construction site.

Whenever there was overtime, a foreman would rally the workers from the sentry tower to boost morale.

 The foreman was usually a huge Hamster. This Hamster didn’t notice an invisible superior Devil walking past him. On the shoulders of the superior Devil were a black kitten and a parrot.

 “Ah—!”

 The loud shouting of the Hamster was amplified by the loudspeakers to reach every part of the construction site. The shouting even reverberated in the deep pit.

“Times are different. Previously, whips were used to indicate overtime. Now, we have to make use of these useless devices.”

 Polio stood on Sherlock’s shoulder and licked his paws. He didn’t like the shrill voice of the Hamster.

 “Did Lord Sherlock bring you here to feel vexed? Do your job properly!” Phoenix said rudely to Polio while he observed Lord Sherlock’s expression carefully.

 Sherlock didn’t show any expression. Polio meowed grudgingly and jumped off Sherlock’s shoulder. The cat trembled rapidly, then transformed into a black mist that drifted out like a black cloud. Even when the cloud drifted out of Sherlock’s invisibility range, the black cloud of Polio didn’t attract much attention.

 The black mist vanished into the crowd.

 Phoenix flapped his wings and flew from Sherlock’s shoulder. Sherlock wasn’t bothered by the departure of his pets. He walked through the construction site. Due to his invisibility, nobody discovered him. Various noises were heard around him.

 “After excavating, I’m going back to do my Daily Mission…”

 “Sherlie is handsome…”

 “That dog Arthur must be thinking of how to take over this farm…”

 “Tomorrow, I’m meeting my online crush…”

 “I’m cursing that scumbag to a horrible death…”

 “The mid-term examination is held tomorrow. Why are you still playing the game?”

 “Is the order from Lord Mammon real?”

 Sherlock stopped in his tracks. He looked for the source of the voice. The noises in his mind vanished, and only the previous voice that he heard became clearer.

 “Who is that superior Devil Sherlock? I checked, and those Goblins are his residents from Eternal Kingdom. He has a good reputation in the Northern Underworld.”

 “I’ve heard of him before, but I don’t have a deep impression. He fought several battles and wrecked the plans of the Ancient Gods army. Compared to our master, he’s still inferior.”

 “What is Lord Mammon looking for? We have been excavating for many days, but we haven’t found anything.”

 “Isn’t Lord Mammon building a theme park?”

 “Do you think that it’s going to be a theme park? Why would Lord Mammon waste so much money to build a theme park?”

 “Perhaps there’s treasure underneath the farm?”

 “Shh, keep it low. There are ears around.”

 “Ho, ho.”

 The voices stopped as Sherlock arrived at the source—a portable toilet with a single cubicle.

 The toilet door opened, and two Gnomes came out and looked around. Then they adjusted their pants and tightened their belts. Under the gazes and finger-pointing of the surrounding gamers, they left in a huff.

 “Lord Sherlock, this is a piece of important information.”

 Bru said, “Are these two Gnomes reliable? Why would Devil King Mammon tell his secret plan to the Gnomes?”

 “Of course not, but what the Gnomes said makes sense. Devil King Mammon wouldn’t waste so much effort to build a theme park. I wonder what Mammon is up to,” Sherlock said as he watched the two Gnomes leave.

 “Indeed, but there’s nothing suspicious at the construction site. Perhaps, this site is a diversion?”

 Bru commented, but Sherlock didn’t reply to him.

 Like Bru had said, the legalities of the construction site were properly handled. The construction site even employed the gamers of Eternal Kingdom. Only the gamers knew whether the construction site was excavating treasure or doing some unscrupulous schemes.

 The thousands of gamers who worked for several days didn’t find anything unusual.

 It was as though Mammon was doing something mischievous but that nobody knew what he was doing. It was hard to bear such a mystery.

 “Perhaps Devil King Mammon wants to do something meaningful for the Underworld? Perhaps, his childlike nature has been awakened!”

 Bru commented, but Sherlock didn’t reply because even Bru didn’t believe it.

 “There must be a conspiracy. But what exactly is the conspiracy?”

 …

 Golden-haired George awoke in fright in his bed.

 Sunlight poured in from the window at his side and illuminated his body. Beside him were many soldiers of the Godly Kingdom who were sound asleep. Only a noble such as George would have the privilege of sleeping on a bed.

 There were too many soldiers of the Godly Kingdom who were freed, and Victoria City was overcrowded. It was a blessing that the prisoners were given lodging.

 George sat up and cleared his mind. He then looked at the window and was taken aback.

 There were many Elves, Fairies, and Humans outside.