Chapter 48: Quarrel and Isolation

"So you’re a player from the Bureau? I thought I’d seen that tight suit somewhere before."

After the long-haired woman in black admitted she was with the Bureau, the young man in a suit, who called himself Huang Yunqiang, exclaimed again, saying he thought the woman’s outfit looked familiar.

"Alright, everyone’s introduced themselves. Let me add a few words, I’m Mr. Han."

The man in the coat opposite the young man in a suit, known as Han Hao the sniper, waved his hand to signal the young man to be quiet, and then summarized:

"Based on the introductions, we have two shooters in this five-man team, one Assassin, Warrior, and Priest each. The team composition is relatively reasonable. As long as we cooperate, there shouldn’t be much trouble in clearing this level perfectly. Next, it depends on what the enemy situation is... Assassin brother, we may need you to be responsible for scouting."

The man in the coat said this with a smile that was quite infectious as he looked at the grinning mask Assassin player beside him.

"Sure."

The smiling mask Assassin responded with the same slightly cold tone, but still nodded in recognition of the man in the coat.

"Next, Warrior brother, your level might be a bit low, but your equipment seems pretty good. You should be on par with us, otherwise, the game wouldn’t have paired you with us."

The man in the coat smiled at Wang Zhifan, giving his suggestion.

"When we fight the bandits, we’ll need you to charge in front to draw fire away from us players. The pressure on you will be higher, but the Priest girl will surely focus on healing you and giving you buffs..."

He spoke slowly, giving orders like an elder brother, seemingly reasonable, but before he could finish, Wang Zhifan interrupted him.

"Guys, I must say something upfront. Even though I’m a Warrior, I don’t like charging into enemy lines, so I might not be in the front later. I’m more inclined to use my firearm for a few rounds first."

Wang Zhifan spoke while shaking the silver-white pistol in his hand, indicating he wasn’t only up for close combat and wasn’t keen on it either.

It’s important to explain why Wang Zhifan is unwilling to charge like a typical Warrior, always wanting to stay behind. The reason is simple: he finds this fighting style too risky, perfectly embodying the characteristic of a Warrior as cannon fodder, but he is cautious and values his life. Unless necessary, he won’t put himself in such extreme danger, even if this goes against the traditional duty of a Warrior and causes more pressure on his teammates.

After all, this is because players only have one life in this game. If you die in it, you’re truly dead. If players could revive like characters in video games, he could act more valiantly, but with only one life, he can’t just blindly charge into enemy lines because of a Warrior’s duty, leaving his life to luck and his teammates performing well. This is unfair to him, and he won’t compromise.

"No way, Brother, you’re a Warrior, you definitely should be in front. You can’t be expecting us shooters to charge, right?"

Just as Wang Zhifan finished speaking, before the man in the coat could respond, the young man in a suit, Huang Yunqiang, immediately voiced opposition to Wang Zhifan’s cautious approach.

"No one needs to charge; everyone can just fight from a distance."

Wang Zhifan immediately retorted, indicating he wasn’t trying to shift the burden to his teammates but rather adopt a safer combat approach.

"Warrior brother, what you’re doing isn’t quite right."

At this point, the man in the coat spoke to Wang Zhifan again with a smile.

"Not to mention how much power you could actually wield with firearms as a Warrior, but you’re the only Warrior in our team right now. You must step up, draw enemy fire, and create a better output environment for the rest of us. Otherwise, if you retreat, the enemy can easily get to us ranged ones, and then this game would be unwinnable, potentially leading to a wipeout."

His words were pressuring Wang Zhifan on team responsibilities, the overall team situation, and game clearance, trying to change his mind.

But Wang Zhifan only sneered inside and immediately raised his voice in rebuttal:

"Haha, just because I’m a Warrior I have to charge and die? Do you think this is a video game? You, as a sniper, can pick off enemies from afar, why do you need me to rush in? Have you ever heard in real-world warfare they need melee units as meat shields? Real-world wars are all about long-range fire exchanges!"

Wang Zhifan pointed out the trap in their words, making clear that combat isn’t stuck to one fixed mode and the game isn’t like a video game where you must have a well-rounded party of Warrior, Priest, and Shooter. He sticks with the combat plan that is safer for himself.

"Fine, I’m not arguing with you."

When the only Warrior in the team made up his mind not to charge forward, the coat-wearing sniper Han Hao’s expression turned cold immediately.

"You’re unwilling to take responsibility for the team, and you keep spouting nonsense. It’s truly disappointing! Do whatever you want later! Since you don’t want to contribute to the team, don’t expect the team to protect you when you’re in danger!"

This man, who was pretty much acknowledged as the team leader, scolded Wang Zhifan solemnly and then waved to the rest of the members, intending to lead them to another side of the courtyard to continue discussing, essentially isolating Wang Zhifan.

"Assassin brother, Ah Qiang, and Priest girl, let’s strategize for the game again. Without the Warrior’s cooperation, this could be tough."

He said while walking to one corner of the courtyard, with the suit-wearing Huang Yunqiang being the first to follow, the face-mask wearing Assassin player hesitated slightly before becoming the second to follow, and the long-haired, black tight-suit wearing Priest woman shook her head, turning to the other corner, indicating she wasn’t interested in the internal conflict drama, preferring to be alone.

As a result, Wang Zhifan was left alone at the initial spot in the courtyard. He soon saw the coat-wearing Han Hao, suit-wearing Huang Yunqiang, and masked Assassin player having a discussion on the other side of the courtyard. He also noticed they occasionally cast subtle glances in his direction, leaving him wondering if they were showing disdain or had another intent.