Trapped Inside the Beta Test World for 1000 Years-Chapter 57 – Balance is everywhere

Despite offering such a high degree of freedom, "Illusory Realm" is still a game where effort and reward are basically linear.
Xia Ya's ability to play so recklessly is due to his extraordinary gaming experience—not everyone can save the world 176 times.
Most of the clues he used in the early stages were obtained in the mid to late stages. At the level he was at back then, these clues were insignificant—at most, they were Easter eggs and extras, mentioned by those involved as anecdotes, far removed from the time periods when they could have an impact.
After all, a normal system wouldn't consider such melodramatic scenarios as reincarnation and starting over.
And the task system in "Illusory Realm," under the premise of high freedom, has another feature:
Balance.
Apulu Pie is currently an 8th-level Rogue, 4th-level Elementalist, 4th-level Hunter, and 2nd-level Militia—a classic case of biting off more than she can chew. This results in her overall evaluation being quite high, roughly equivalent to a single-class level of 13—similar to Xia Ya when he left the Starter Village.
Moreover, her task origins are dubious.
Drill Sergeant Doom, while suspicious of her, is also testing her by giving her the highest difficulty task to leave the village. Coupled with her strength and overall evaluation being severely mismatched, this weirdo's task difficulty to leave the village reached a hair-raising level.
Level 35 wild creatures...
And there are two of them!
Hawks usually travel in pairs, one male and one female. The male was killed, and the female is undoubtedly in a berserk state with a 25% increase in damage and speed.
It was already difficult for them to escape, let alone with a few NPCs who were only superficially cooperative.
"Big brother, why is my task to leave the village so hard? It's so difficult, so difficult..."
Apulu Pie was being held in Yveline's arms, looking content, but her eyes were full of grievance.
Xia Ya glanced at where her head was resting and didn't want to answer the question.
At this moment, a round-faced merchant with a felt hat, looking prosperous, emerged from the group hiding in the crevice. His small eyes scanned everyone before finally settling on Xia Ya, confirming that this suddenly appearing Half-Elf was the one in charge.
"Sir, thank you very much for your rescue. I am Andrew, the manager of the Clover Chamber of Commerce in Astan City. May I know your name..."
"Xia Ya."
Xia Ya looked at this old acquaintance, his expression slightly unusual.
Although Apulu Pie's task origins were dubious, the content still followed the Rogue's "shortcut" line. Normally, they wouldn't need to take such a treacherous mountain path but should take the main road.
The Clover Chamber of Commerce's base is in Allendale, north of the Starter Village, separated by the Red Earth Prairie of the Barbarians, forming a rough line with the Starter Village and Astan City. This means Andrew crossed the Red Earth Prairie, rested at the Starter Village, and then headed to Astan City to participate in Burkeville's auction.
For the Dark Brotherhood, this was undoubtedly a fat fish. So they disguised themselves as Brusolo mercenaries, successfully taking on the escort mission, with the Rogue player among them.
The game wouldn't let players stand on the moral opposite, as that would make most people uncomfortable.
So this was also a plot about betraying the Brotherhood out of a guilty conscience.
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Along the way, Andrew was like an old general on stage, full of flags. He would look at photos, talk about his daughter, boast about making a fortune this time, and returning home in glory, while subtly hinting, "I'm not as naive as I look; I've already noticed your ulterior motives; it's not too late to switch sides."
If the player defected, the content would be to assassinate companions at night, and afterward, Andrew would introduce you to the Nightingale's Home to become a righteous thief. If you didn't defect, successfully slaughtering the sheep was fine, but if not, you'd be sent to Astan City's prison, then rescued by the Bloodhand Gang, continuing to walk in the gray area.
As for Apulu Pie...
From her performance, Xia Ya felt she hadn't realized the system's good intentions at all—she didn't know Andrew was hiding his true abilities, nor did she know the task was an escort in name but a robbery in reality.
—No wonder Old Andrew didn't lift a finger when Apulu Pie was beaten to death...
Xia Ya muttered to himself, thinking that the small-eyed merchant probably hadn't figured out whether Apulu Pie was genuinely clueless or just pretending.
...
"Mr. Xia Ya, please allow me to thank you again for your rescue."
Andrew was unnerved by Xia Ya's gaze.
The other party seemed to be just a young Half-Elf. In Allendale, such a young man would still need to go out to sea for two years to build strength before being considered an adult. But with his years of experience traveling far and wide, he couldn't gauge the depth of the other party.
He had an air of seasoned maturity. From appearing to rescue people to now teaming up with companions to slaughter that beast, he always seemed at ease, completely inconsistent with his apparent age. Even the most experienced hunters and old fishermen he had met couldn't compare...
It sounded like a joke.
Andrew couldn't help but mock himself.
"You're too kind, Mr. Andrew. It seems... you're also heading to Astan City for the auction?"
"You guessed right, indeed. And you are...?"
"I'm her friend, here to help." Xia Ya said with a smile, "And to... give you a ride."
Andrew's eyelids twitched.
Ha, give me a ride...
The round-faced merchant's squinty eyes opened slightly, trying to find something in Xia Ya's eyes, but he failed.
The other party wasn't making a confident declaration before acting, nor was he arrogantly making a promise... it seemed more like he was saying it on purpose.
Andrew wanted to ask more, but Xia Ya had already left.
...
"Big brother, you'll help me finish this task, right?"
Apulu Pie looked at him pitifully, and Xia Ya forcefully closed her eyes.
"There's no hope, just wait for death, close your eyes."
"Ahhh! Why!"
Xia Ya briefly explained the reason and then concluded, "So you chose the most rugged path, keep it up, girl. Although you looked pathetic being chased by the hawk, your counterattack... tsk, really..."
"Awesome, right!?"
"...really stupid. Your desperate struggle was ineffective." Xia Ya shrugged, "Your hand crossbow can't even pierce its eyelid. I think Andrew mentioned something similar to you before?"
"What!? Did he say that???"
Apulu Pie tried hard to recall and suddenly remembered the conversation with the squinty-eyed merchant before entering the canyon:
—"Child, is that your toy?"
—"Come on, uncle, this is a weapon! It cost me 3 silver coins!"
—"Oh, in our Allendale, such things are considered toys, as they can't even pierce an osprey's eyelid..."
In that moment of recollection, the girl had an epiphany.
Could the game really be detailed to this extent??
"Then, then, then I just went to find the uncle, and he looked worried and said 'the weather's changing,' what does that mean? Is it going to rain?"
"'The weather's changing' means the task difficulty has upgraded."
Xia Ya stood up and walked toward the crevice, muttering "damn balance."
Apulu Pie lifted her head, her gaze touching the dark forest behind him, her eyes widening suddenly.
In the canyon, thick fog was rising.