Chapter17-The Stratagems of an SSS-level Hidden Class

As the intelligence personnel busied themselves, Jason had already hastened away, arriving in front of a potion shop in the eastern district of Losfall. 

The area was a bustling square. 

Players, in great need of potions for leveling up, were gathered there in droves. 

Jason, recalling the moment he left the wooden courtyard, couldn't help but smile at the thought of the intelligence personnel eagerly rushing out. 

"Trying to compete with me for the quest?" he mused with a smirk, "Well, thank you very much for that."

The previous night, upon realizing that a large number of players had already gathered in Losfall, Jason had concocted a plan to significantly profit from them. 

His first move was to leverage other players to complete the quest line from Lance, the NPC, ahead of time. 

Assisting Lance in building the magus tower was actually a regional storyline, which, in a past life, took several major guilds in Losfall over a month to complete collectively.

The players involved didn't really gain any personal benefits from it... 

However, once the magus tower was successfully constructed, everyone in the Losfall region could train several special units there. 

In fact, before these guilds embarked on this storyline, they had already learned through various side quests that helping Lance build the magus tower came with no rewards.

The reason these guilds were so altruistic had to do with the game's third event post-launch, "Divine Madness." 

This event, akin to the monster sieges common in online games, was held periodically. 

It required players from all the starter cities to work together to withstand the siege, and with each iteration, the difficulty and rewards escalated significantly. 

The truly vexing aspect of "Divine Madness" was its rapidly increasing difficulty, and should the monsters breach the city, the penalties were severe.

In a past life, several starter cities were tragically overrun, forcing their players to relocate to other novice towns, all while enduring a harsh penalty of halved rewards for every quest, lasting an entire month. 

The guilds in Losfall were keen to avoid such a dire fate and saw no choice but to aid Lance in constructing the magus tower, thereby boosting the overall strength of the region's players.

At this juncture, Jason's strategy was to leverage his own illustrious achievements to coax representatives from various nations and families within Losfall to aid him in prematurely completing this regional storyline. 

Although the game had just launched, with the backing of governments and top-tier families, the construction of the magus tower might proceed even more swiftly than it had with the major guilds in his previous life.

Once the magus tower was completed, Jason, possessing the Underworld Baptism, would benefit significantly more from training special units than others would. 

More crucially, it would advance Lance's personal storyline, leading to a mission related to the Veronica Magic Academy. 

Jason was unclear about the specific rewards, but he knew that one of Earth's top ten powerhouses, [The God of Arcane] Aesth, had risen to prominence after completing this very mission. 

The rewards, then, must be extraordinarily formidable!

"Looks like everyone is almost here," Jason mused internally, planning his future moves while observing the growing number of players around him, his expression revealing a smile.

When he arrived at the square in front of the potion shop, he deactivated his ID's concealment. 

The name "Smith" instantly drew the attention of intelligence personnel and ordinary players who loved a spectacle, quickly surrounding the area. 

Unsurprisingly to Jason, it didn't take long for someone to approach him. 

The first was a scantily clad, voluptuous blonde beauty. 

Drawing close, she initiated, "Mr. Smith, hello. I represent the Fideli family. May I inquire if we might have the honor of your friendship?" Her tone was ingratiating.

However, Jason merely gave her a cool glance. 

"Not interested." 

The blonde woman tried to persist, but then, a similarly scantily clad young man with distinctly defined muscles approached Jason. 

"Hello…" he said, casting a suggestive glance. Jason's expression darkened instantly, "Beat it." 

He thought, what, assuming I'm not into women, you think I'd prefer men?

The representatives of various families continued to arrive in waves, each attempting to woo him. 

At one point, two players approached Jason and covertly used an item that enabled secret communication, saying, "I am an official representative from Celestria/Everdawn, Mr. Jason. Would you be interested in discussing a partnership with our nation's government?" Faced with offers from such powerful countries, Jason relented slightly, "There might be opportunities for collaboration in the future."

The final act featured a middle-aged man adorned with a full beard. 

"Mr. Smith, I respectfully extend an invitation from the Valoria military for you and the family behind you to discuss potential collaborations in developing the Divine Age." 

"You must be aware that no family power can compare to the full support of a nation's forces," he said with as much warmth as he could muster.

However, Jason merely smiled nonchalantly, "Sorry, our own resources are sufficient to explore any opportunities." 

He understood from the recruitment pitches that the world speculated he had a mysterious family backing him. 

Thus, he deliberately used "we" to solidify their assumptions, aiding his concealment of his true identity. 

As for the invitation from the official Americal forces? 

Without the [Undead Plague], he might have considered it. 

But why share the spoils when Jason could monopolize the winnings alone?

By now, quite a few players had gathered around. Ignoring the intelligence personnel still eager to speak, Jason clapped his hands and announced loudly to the players, "I need to acquire a batch of materials." "Ten bundles of Solaris Herb, thirty Toad Skins…" 

"I'll pay double the NPC buyout price, in gold coins or other basic resources." 

Jason listed items needed for a quest he was on, which required gathering from various regions in Losfall. 

To save time, he chose to buy them directly. 

With three first-kill achievements under his belt, Jason had more basic resources than he could use; converting them into quest materials would maximize his army expansion.

Initially, the surrounding players hesitated. "Offering so much? Could this be a scam?" 

"Who do you think Smith is? Would he really need to scam us?" 

"Big shot! Big shot! I'll trade with you." …

With the "Smith" brand acting as a seal of trust, players quickly began initiating trades. 

Jason paid promptly, and within about ten minutes, he had acquired some of the materials. 

Having built a foundation of trust with the initial purchase, he then presented his second shopping list, "I need some obsidian…" 

After listing the materials, he added, "The price will be double what NPCs offer."

These weren't quest items, but rather the "tickets" needed to access an event dungeon. 

Entering this dungeon would give Jason the chance to skyrocket in power, securing an SSS-level hidden class. 

"I'll be back here at ten o'clock tonight to buy more materials," Jason declared, then adopted a cool, silent demeanor akin to a master.

A day was more than enough for the players to gather all the materials he needed for his task. 

As for the event dungeon "tickets," it might take a bit longer to collect. 

The players around him, though unclear about Jason's exact plan, saw an opportunity to make money and scattered to gather various materials.

After finalizing arrangements with the players, Jason was about to leave when the previously rebuffed intelligence personnel converged on him again, like hyenas drawn to fresh blood. 

However, what they faced was a resounding dragon roar.

"Ao!!"

The White Dragon Carolina descended from the sky, her form now adorned with mysterious and noble blue patterns, a majestic presence that signified her evolution to SSS-level – a transformation exclusive to her dragon form in this elevated state.

Her fierce dragon roar, carrying the terrifying sonic force imbued with the dragonkind's majesty, made all the players encircling Jason retreat in alarm. 

"Are you also worthy of touching my great master?" 

Carolina said indignantly. E

ven the spokesperson for the Valoria military, accustomed to tough situations, stepped back several paces, his complexion ashen. 

The realism of Divine Age was overwhelming; he genuinely felt as if his life hung by a thread under the dragon's might, his initial eagerness to connect with Jason morphing into a thick, unresolved dread.

The surrounding intelligence personnel displayed similar expressions, filled with immense fear and unease. 

Even though these individuals represented families and governments that could decide life and death with a mere word on Earth, they were equally disgraceful in the face of mortal peril.