Of course, those pursuers wouldn't consider you the kind of vicious criminal who, once caught, would be thrown into Azkaban. They believe the Contractor who committed the offense is actually a tourist who, through some coincidence, discovered a Bowtruckle and enthusiastically turned it over to the British Museum. So, even if caught, the punishment would merely be a flash of light forcing a memory wipe.

However, this seemingly lenient punishment is severe enough. The pursuers' flash effectively deletes every bit of your adventure experience from your current entry into that world. In other words, if Fang Senyan were hit by it, Hagrid wouldn't recognize him, and everything obtained from the Troll would be erased... At that point, the low evaluation for passing the stage would surely rival the depth of Liu Yan's career arc.

By now, the owner of the Magical Menagerie would also be returning. If the old gentleman hadn't stepped out on an errand, Phil, the employee, wouldn't dare bring outsiders in. Thus, Fang Senyan and Gree hastily departed. Walking down the streets of Diagon Alley, Fang Senyan was quite curious why Gree acted so high and mighty in front of Phil, while Phil could only swallow his anger. Gree seemed eager to discuss the topic, so he started from the beginning.

It turned out that among all the Contractors drawn, those specializing in melee combat accounted for at least forty percent. However, of this fifty percent, nearly one-third followed an agile melee route, leaving only those whose personal attributes leaned towards strength and constitution. Typically, only these Contractors possessed robust resilience, making them suitable for charging onto the front lines.

Calculating this way, the number of melee Contractors suitable for frontline charging was still quite substantial, perhaps accounting for 2.5% of the total Contractor population.

But everyone knew the cruelty of the Nightmare World, especially in the initial few worlds where Contractors performing ranged attacks had a significantly higher survival rate than those in melee. Consequently, the casualty rate for Contractors whose personal attributes focused on strength and constitution was alarmingly high—at least three times higher than their ranged counterparts! After enduring two or three worlds consecutively, this led to a rather awkward situation: melee Contractors capable of engaging in protracted, close-quarters fighting became quite scarce.

According to Gree, some teams, lacking sufficient manpower in this area, couldn't even challenge many missions successfully. Of course, among Contractors new to the Nightmare World, there was a prevailing opinion that once ranged attacks reached a certain saturation point, melee attacks would become largely irrelevant.

However, this view only applied to warfare in the real world and could not be universally applied to the Nightmare World, especially as world difficulty increased and the creatures to be challenged grew stronger.

To give a simple example: Pickaxe’s previously formed six-person team successfully killed the Troll, but could six gunslingers kill the Troll? The answer is definitely no. Firstly, a marksman's accuracy plummets when shooting at moving targets; they absolutely wouldn't have the luxury of carefully aiming for vital spots. The possibility of crippling it instantly was entirely out of the question.

Secondly, without anyone drawing aggro, one swing of the Troll's log-toss attack would certainly eliminate one gunslinger! Under the constant threat of imminent death, who could calmly maintain their attack? Moreover, the Troll is a creature that flees; once its health drops to a certain level, it turns and runs—would the gunslingers pursue? If the Troll hides in a blind spot beyond shooting range, who would lure it out?

What’s more, from a psychological perspective, such a team could never be formed in the first place. When their lives are threatened, naturally everyone is willing to fight desperately, but when no one’s life is under direct threat, very few are still willing to risk death.

Imagine a ranged attacker trying to persuade other ranged attackers: "Brothers, let's form a team to kill the Troll. Although a few of us might die, it definitely won't be you! We can definitely kill that monster and get the rewards." That proposition would inevitably end in failure... No one would join such a team, risking certain death, when other avenues for gaining benefits exist.

Therefore, as melee Contractors—especially those capable of stalling and drawing out the fight—become increasingly rare, their status and influence within a team inevitably soar, because the risks they take are unquestionably several times higher than those of Contractors hiding in the rear conducting ranged attacks. To the ordinary team members, they inherently possess a superior standing.

This is why, in the previous team, although Pickaxe’s strength was far below Metal Mentor's, he could still become a core member and dared to scheme to keep the Troll's spoils for himself, damaging Metal Mentor's interests. His leverage was naturally based on this point. If his plan had succeeded, only he among the Symbiosis Society's melee Contractors would have survived, and Metal Mentor, lacking concrete evidence, truly couldn't have done much to him.

Thinking about it again now, there is no gratuitous love in the world, nor is there gratuitous hatred. Gree’s extreme friendliness towards Fang Senyan made his objective obvious: clearly, the melee Contractor contingent of the Symbiosis Society would be built around the two of them from now on. Since Fang Senyan’s strength, even based on current display, was quite impressive, Gree, who wanted to replace Pickaxe, absolutely needed Fang Senyan’s support.

"So that's how it is..." As Fang Senyan absorbed the series of revelations from Gree, a gleam flashed in his eyes, though his mouth curved into a slight smile. Having personally joined this team, he already felt numerous conveniences. Gree's news further solidified Fang Senyan's confidence in establishing his own team.

"Let's go. According to team rules, we need to meet at the safe house every afternoon for communication, unless there are special circumstances. The Mentor said I should bring you over to integrate with the team first, and while we're at it, finish the prerequisite task for the 'Enthusiast' achievement."

Gree had already led Fang Senyan to the end of Diagon Alley. After checking the time, he tapped a few times on the brick wall, returning them to the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron in London. The pub inside was already filling up. Old Nick was extremely busy behind the counter but immediately glared at Fang Senyan as soon as he saw him, ready to launch into a tirade. Fang Senyan promptly tossed him a five-pound coin. He figured he’d be coming in and out quite frequently over the next few days; there was no need to squabble with the old man over a pint of ale.

Old Nick made a gesture indicating "You'll pay for this next time" and bothered himself no further. As Gree passed the patrons in the pub, he deliberately slowed his pace, offering a smile to every known NPC. Then he whispered to Fang Senyan:

"Try to spend a bit more time here. I heard that when Metal Mentor first entered this world, he met a wizard right in this pub. His charisma stat wasn't low to begin with, and it matched well with that wizard's affinity, so he secured quite a few opportunities. Metal Mentor’s current abilities are inextricably linked to that initial opportunity. In this damned world, danger is everywhere, but if you seize an opportunity, there’s immense potential!"

Fang Senyan, however, noticed Gree's evaluation of Metal Mentor: he "secured quite a few opportunities," not "gained quite a few benefits." This suggested there were no free lunches in the spatial system; opportunities, if not grasped through effort, would still vanish into smoke. Even more tragically, many people never even got the chance! Take Pickaxe, for instance—a man possessing both ambition and cunning, yet he never found any good opportunities, eventually having to gamble everything to create one for himself... But this very opportunity was utilized by Fang Senyan.

Clearly, neither of them managed to stumble upon any unexpected fortune in the pub, especially Fang Senyan, who didn't hold high hopes for his meager few points in Charisma.

Once they reached normal London, Gree led Fang Senyan directly to the front of a building that looked quite old-fashioned. As they entered, Fang Senyan even felt a faint sense of threat aimed at his forehead, likely from some kind of sniper.

Fang Senyan remained outwardly calm. Upon reaching the third floor, he discovered an incredibly luxurious hall scattered with about fifteen or sixteen people. Judging by the distribution of their seating, one could already roughly discern their status within the team. According to the information Gree provided, the entire Symbiosis Society was assembled using the rare item "Soul Stone," meaning this was likely the majority of the group.

This observation confirmed that Gree's earlier statements weren't fabricated: the Symbiosis Society had about twenty members in total, but only a meager five Contractors possessed distinctly superior strength. Recalling their performance during the previous fight, two of those five Contractors had rather mediocre stats. In retrospect, it really did seem like a case of quality over quantity.

Fang Senyan's unfamiliar face naturally attracted many questioning glances. Gree, however, let out a low chuckle and swaggered directly to one of the central seats in the foremost row. Clearly, several people below him showed expressions of surprise and doubt. One man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, who seemed to have a relatively good relationship with Gree, directly quipped:

"Gree, you can only sit there now. Once Pickaxe arrives, won't you have to give up your seat?"