I was just about to head over to the area on the third floor where the orc warriors roam, when a little girl walked up and blocked my way. An angel, with lips so red they could tempt someone to death, sparkling eyes beneath long lashes, and a petite yet overly mature body—she made even me, who always prided myself on having a strong will, freeze for a good while. So women can really be this beautiful; it’s truly rare to see someone this pretty. Beside me, Little Henry was practically drooling. At this rate, I think the orcs should be happy (I heard they look so ugly because they lack water, the half-orcs—

　　Half-orc: No way, I think I’m quite handsome. Whenever Little Misss see me, they always scream with excitement. Sigh, it’s not my fault I’m so good-looking).

　　“Hello, can I discuss something with you?” Little Beauty didn’t put on any of that fake cutesy act, she was lively and natural. Ugh, I like her.

　　“What’s up?” I instinctively gave a smile. It seems no one can resist the power of beauty.

　　“You’ve killed all the monsters here, so no one else can level up. You should go to a higher-level area, right?” Little Cutie blinked mischievously as she spoke.

　　At this point, Little Henry was looking at me like I was a class enemy. I gave him a kick to send him off to cool down, then said to Little Beauty, “Hehe, sorry, I’ll leave right away. It’s all because that Little Fatty dragged me here to help him. If you want to blame someone, blame him.”

　　I said goodbye to the charming Little Miss (I wanted to get closer, but didn’t know how to start), and dragged the still-dazed Little Henry up toward the mountain peak.

　　On the way, there were fewer half-orcs, mostly half-orc warriors, who were even uglier (the orc race must have the opposite aesthetic from humans). Violent Flames wasn’t very effective against them, so I switched to Thunderbolt. Watching bolts of lightning strike down was truly spectacular. Wait, Little Henry made a dangerous gesture—there was a half-orc warrior ahead. Little Henry shot at it with his crossbow, but barely did any damage, though he did lure it over. I zapped it—with my high luck and a set of great gear, I could still kill it. But this guy was clearly faster and smarter, which caused some trouble for me as a mage. Luckily, Little Henry helped keep it busy. Little Henry leveled up to 17, and I was almost 21. But there were so many people on Orc Mountain; it was still faster to train in the Ghost Cave.

　　Suddenly, there was chaos up ahead, like someone had run into a powerful monster. Besides us, everyone else here was in groups of three to five, all level 15 or above. This wasn’t a good place to level up, so what attracted them must be the boss, the half-orc chieftain. Could it be…

　　“Help!!!” Huh? That voice sounded so familiar.

　　Little Henry and I rushed over to see: sure enough, the half-orc chieftain! Two level-18 warriors were hacking away at the boss, barely holding on, while a female priestess was busy casting healing spells. On the ground lay a mage and a thief, and the one shouting for help was Little Grace (the pretty little girl from earlier). Whether it was good luck or bad, the chieftain was a nightmare for low-level mages. It was a boss skilled in both ranged and melee attacks, and its flying axe could instantly kill any non-warrior class. Just as I was about to save Little Grace, whom I’d just said goodbye to, I saw her. I’d seen beautiful women before, but only to look and daydream about. She was different. Not only was she stunning, but she gave me a feeling like I’d found something I’d lost long ago. Maybe this is what they call love at first sight. I was smitten. I had only one thought in my mind: charge forward. For the first time in my life, I had such a clear goal. With this strong conviction, I hit the boss with a big lightning bolt, taking off 50 HP in one go.

　　“Don’t panic, everyone! Little Henry, poison it quickly! Warriors, block it! Miss, take care of everyone—whoever the boss attacks, heal them!”

　　The female priestess glanced at me, her expression hard to read—surprised, happy, but also a bit indifferent. But to me, that was everything. The chieftain clearly saw me as the biggest threat, gave up on the warriors, and charged at me, hurling a flying axe right at my face. I dodged, dodged again—ouch, it grazed my butt. I zapped it! Beside me, Little Grace kept shouting, “Hey, you high-level guy, save my sister, defeat the monster!”

　　Seriously, she didn’t even remember my name!

　　I cast a few Violent Flames, then circled around the fire to dodge the axes, zapping it whenever I got the chance. My agility was really paying off, and with the cursed armor’s effect, I basically avoided any fatal hits. After a tough battle, the boss finally collapsed. The world was peaceful again. It dropped a pile of gear, potions, and several stacks of silver coins. If it hadn’t died, I would’ve dropped from exhaustion.

　　At that moment, the NPC announced: “Congratulations, player Soul Mage. You are the first in the Second World to kill the boss Half-Orc Chieftain. The system rewards you with 100 reputation points. The Half-Orc Chieftain is now downgraded to a regular monster (meaning no more rewards; actually, it’s the weakest boss).”

　　Little Henry and the two warriors were busy collecting the loot, while I just stared blankly at Little Grace’s sister. The two of them really… didn’t look alike at all.

　　This girl gave me a completely different feeling—hard to describe, but my whole body tingled. I’d seen beautiful women before, but ones like her were truly rare. Oh no, I realized clearly that I’d been struck by Cupid’s arrow!

　　I used to be indifferent to girls because I hadn’t met one I liked. Once I did, there was no stopping it!