Chapter 130
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 130
Chapter Title: Skill Plunder
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What the hell? What am I even looking at right now?
The description of the skill that appeared as the first clear reward was so absurd that I started doubting if my eyes were playing tricks on me.
Steal someone else's skill?
I'd cautiously speculated that something like this might exist—a trait or skill of this kind—but I never imagined it would pop up right in front of me.
It was so unbelievable that I rubbed my eyes and checked the skill again.
[Skill Plunder]
You can forcibly steal the opponent's skill.
This is insane. Am I really not seeing things?
Anyone with a brain would instantly recognize how ridiculously overpowered a skill that steals someone else's abilities is.
And now I have it.
Is this thanks to that Luck Bracelet I picked up earlier?
Boosting my Luck stat by 2 must've scored me this jackpot reward!
"Whoa, today is my lucky day. With this, I can steal everyone else's skills... Huh?"
I was about to acquire the skill right away when more details I hadn't read popped up.
Using the skill consumes 1,000 Coins, and there is a success probability.
Success probability increases proportionally with skill level.
You must know the exact name and effect of the target's skill to use it.
Cannot be used on skills or traits obtained through traits or those requiring specific trait conditions.
If Skill Plunder succeeds, the skill's level resets to 1.
Yeah, that makes sense.
There was no way a busted skill like this would come without strings attached.
The restrictions are pretty steep, huh?
For starters, it costs Coins to use—1,000 of them, no less.
Every single use? That's ridiculous.
It's basically like spending Coins just to maybe get a skill.
And no guarantee of success? That's infuriating.
If I could max it to level 10 like Plunder and hit 100% like that, it'd be fine. But if it never reaches 100%, no matter how high I level it... that means eventual failures.
Which is the same as flushing my hard-earned Coins down the toilet.
All those Coins I've grinded for, and this skill just wastes them?
It's like a mobile gacha mechanic.
Plus, I have to know the exact name and effect of the target's skill. That means either they share their status window with me or spill it verbally.
How many people would actually tell me everything?
If I had a skill to peek at someone else's status window, it'd pair perfectly, but I don't have one. Shame.
I'll have to snag one if I find it later.
Even if I know the skill, I can't just steal any skill willy-nilly.
For example, I couldn't Plunder Yejin's Healing Touch because it's tied to her Medical Specialist trait.
Conversely, someone without the Outpost Manager trait couldn't steal my Outpost Fortification skill.
If they had the same trait, they'd already have the skill anyway, so no need to Plunder.
And even with my Technician trait, I couldn't steal attack skills like Exploding Fist. Skills are meant to align with traits, so it blocks me from mixing and matching.
They're really locking down all-rounder builds.
Finally, even on success, it starts at level 1. So I still have to invest Coins to level it up.
So many hoops... Couldn't it just let me steal without all this?
"Sigh, that's just my luck. Still, snagging a skill like this ain't bad."
It's loaded with caveats, but that doesn't make it a bad skill by any means.
Way better than waiting around for some random skill to drop.
The first one on my mind? That Double Skill from the guy holding court in Yeouido's market.
I don't know the details yet, but it doesn't seem tied to a trait.
Which means I can Plunder it.
How long would it take to grind mutant zombies for a skill that doubles items?
Even with the failure chance, this is way better odds than hoping for a drop while farming zombies.
"Might as well learn it for now."
I acquired Skill Plunder and immediately checked the success rate.
Success Probability: 11%
Success probability increases by an additional 1% per skill level.
"Whoa, only this much?"
The base success rate is lower than I thought, and even upgrades barely budge it.
To hit 100%, I'd need level 90. The Coins for that? Might as well gacha instead.
Leveling from 1: 100 Coins, then +100 each time...
Insane—409,500 Coins?
Way too pricey for 100% reliability.
"Let's just bump it to level 10 for now. 20% should be decent."
Anyone who's pulled in mobile gachas knows: 20% on a single pull is god-tier luck.
Anyway, looks like I scored big today.
Fitting reward for Difficulty 4.
Right as I thought about heading out, a system window appeared.
The cleared dungeon has been deactivated and designated as a safe zone.
One week is required until the dungeon reactivates.
Time remaining until dungeon activation: 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes
I'll swing by next week when it reactivates.
Repeat rewards aren't bad, especially from a Difficulty 4 dungeon.
The system window vanished, and the staircase that had sunk into the wall popped back out toward the exit.
Clear the dungeon, and it doesn't even auto-eject you? Gotta climb manually.
I keep saying it, but whoever made this system has zero sense.
I endured the hassle, climbed the stairs to the surface, scarfed down lunch, and pondered my next move.
Since I'll be visiting this dungeon often, I should designate an extra zone nearby.
Round trips are a time sink.
Also need to scout a water source for the outpost's supply.
I wolfed down a quick lunch, stood up, and designated an extra zone around the Difficulty 4 dungeon.
While I was at it, I renamed it so I wouldn't mix it up.
"Oh? This function exists too?"
Renaming extra zones revealed I could cut power and water supply to specific zones at will.
I knew extra zones counted as outpost territory—solar generators there feed power to the main base—but controlling supply per zone? News to me.
The only extra zone with people is around Guro Apartment.
Meaning they're freely tapping my power and water.
They probably didn't yesterday since it was free elsewhere, but today's cutoff means they're using mine now.
They'll freak when it cuts out.
They have no clue about my extra zone.
I immediately shut off power and water to Guro Apartment.
Can't let them leech without paying up.
That's thief mentality.
Though... it does sting a bit remembering how they offered Coins like tribute every time I visited.
Not huge amounts, but useful.
So, cut them off now, then tomorrow I show up, say as God's Apostle I'll restore power and water—but only a little—in exchange for more Coins.
They'll cheer like crazy.
Lie that more Coins mean more supply, and they'll grind harder.
Perfect. Squeeze Guro Apartment dry like this.
Unless someone there gets Technician and Outpost Manager traits, maxing Outpost Fortification like me, they won't figure it out. Even if they do, doesn't matter.
Odds of that are low, and if it happens, survival's still better under my wing.
Better to accept the illusion than demand truth.
Alright, time to hunt a water source.
Hanjang River's the safest bet.
No nearby lakes, groundwater's hard to find, so by elimination, the big river—Han River.
Secure that, and no more power or water worries. Let's go.
Maybe detour through Yeouido on the way?
Plundering that Double Skill sounds tempting.