Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: 1. A Common Setup, Huh?
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1. A Common Setup, Huh?
He pulled out the combat rations he'd bought in advance and tore open the packaging. White steam immediately rose up as it began to heat. A rat or two occasionally scurried by right in front of him, but he had no intention of blindly charging at them with his sword. Soon enough, Sung-hoon held the now-warm combat rations in one hand and began scattering the contents around various spots in the warehouse.
Then he took out a poison potion from his inventory and lightly sprinkled it over the food.
"Hoo. This should be enough, right?"
He'd used up about half the rations and a whopping six poison potions from his stockpile. Neither the rations nor the potions were cheap. But he didn't hesitate. First clear bonus.
He had to make a strong first step.
Guild income could come easily whether early or late. But first clear bonuses required swift action to monopolize. Investment was needed now. Bold investment. And soon enough, a small window popped up.
His goal was clearing Massacre mode.
A rat was visible some distance away, trembling violently after eating the poisoned food. As he approached, it tried desperately to flee but kept stumbling around in confusion. He didn't even need to draw his sword. One kick sent it flying far off.
The poisoned bait strategy worked perfectly. Normal rats were clever. They had the ability to learn from seeing a fellow die after eating poisoned food. But Sung-hoon had an excellent skill.
Lowest Poison Technique (E)
Rank: Normal (Lowest)
Type: Passive
-Poison isn't something you use recklessly. Just as wielding a weapon requires proper technique, handling poison demands skill as well.
-Poison potency from Poison Technique increases by 1%.
-If Wisdom is low or no appropriate detection skill is learned, the chance of detecting poison decreases.
Like Lowest Swordsmanship, the Lowest Poison Technique could be bought for 100 guild. The key point was the reduced chance of poison detection. In other words, it could inflict poison status without showing any abnormalities in the status window.
Empowered by the Lowest Poison Technique's effect, the rats ate the food without a shred of suspicion. Dismissing the Hunter condition message, Sung-hoon felt satisfied with his choice.
All the Lowest skills were uniformly 100 guild each. The problem was the next-tier Low skills. They jumped tenfold to 1,000 guild. Mid-tier skills then leaped another tenfold to 10,000 guild.
He could have poured all his wealth into mastering one field up to Mid-tier. But he didn't. He didn't want to be a lone wolf. Plenty of others could fight on the front lines for him. He wasn't aiming for overwhelming power but the ability to respond to any situation. For now, survival was the goal, so he'd chosen skills accordingly.
Splat!
No need for a sword.
Rationally speaking, someone like him—who'd never touched a sword his whole life—couldn't realistically swing one around to kill rats even after learning Low Swordsmanship. To take down a hundred rats in this warehouse with a sword, he'd need at least Advanced Swordsmanship.
But he'd combined poison and rations to poison the swarm.
'Think.'
There was never just one way to complete a quest. Charging in sword-first like a madman was the dumbest approach. Of course, if you had the skill to hunt them directly, it wouldn't be dumb. He was glad he'd picked the Rat Swarm Hunt. If he'd gone for Wild Dog Hunt from the start, he might not have gained this insight.
And soon, another message window appeared.
He hesitated briefly but tapped the "Yes" without delay. Brilliant light enveloped him once more, and Sung-hoon's figure vanished from the warehouse.
He'd been in the warehouse moments ago, but now he lay on a bed in a cramped little room. It was a spartan space with just a bed, table, and chair. After glancing around, Sung-hoon first opened his inventory.
With rewards added to his remaining funds from purchases, it showed 4,000 guild.
'Wisdom rose after the "calculating clear method" message. Did it go up because I used my head to clear the quest?'
If he wasn't pushing for mage, he couldn't keep cheesing quests like this forever.
Next, he pulled up his status window.
Gazing at stats still far below average, he unhesitatingly dumped the bonus point into Stamina. Thanks to Jerry constantly healing him in the Starting Room, he hadn't noticed, but his Stamina was abysmal. Even after title bonuses and this point, it barely hit 10—the baseline for a normal person. Cautiously, he opened the door and stepped out.
A long corridor stretched ahead, lined with dozens of identical doors on both sides. Staying alert, he descended the stairs and finally realized where he was.
At the bottom was the familiar Mission Office.
Apparently, accepting a quest here teleported you to the site, and clearing returned you to one of these rooms.
"So..."
"Wild Dog Hunt. I'll take this one."
The Rat Swarm Hunt hadn't taken long, but enough time had passed for people to get their bearings and start moving. A few were huddled with counselors, chatting, and one or two vanished in beams of light.
No time to hesitate. He needed to grind as fast and much as possible. The female counselor he'd spoken to before had no line.
Figuring it was better to deal with someone familiar, Sung-hoon headed her way. Less than a second later, he regretted it.
"Oh my! The player from before? You already cleared Rat Swarm Hunt? Impressive!"
Her voice wasn't loud, but plenty to carry in the sparsely populated office.
A curse nearly slipped out, but the Betrayer title worked its magic, forcibly maintaining his poker face whether he liked it or not.
'Smile. No point getting mad.'
He caught nearby people sneaking glances. Following their stares over his body, he spotted another issue. Most wore beginner gear. Some had weapons, but no one else rocked a gray coat with a longsword slung across their back.
It was meant to be inconspicuous, but right now, it stuck out like a sore thumb.
"Hahaha, could you show me the other quest list?"
"Of course. One moment."
Rank: E
Catch sparrows disturbing the farms.
Achievements:
1. Sparrow Catcher: Catch 5 sparrows (0/5)
2. Hunter: Catch 20 sparrows (0/20)
3. Massacre: Catch 100 sparrows (0/100)
Base reward: 1,000 guild, Fame +1 (additional rewards per achievement).
Massacre mode first clear bonus: Bonus Stat Point +1
Rank: E
Sudden pest breeding is harming the forest trees. Eliminate the pests.
Achievements:
1. Bug Catcher: Kill 100 pests (0/100)
2. Hunter: Kill 500 pests (0/500)
3. Massacre: Kill 1,000 pests (0/1000)
Base reward: 300 guild, Fame +1 (additional rewards per achievement).
Massacre mode first clear bonus: Low Stamina Potion
All E-rank quests were pretty much the same, just different targets. Some rewarded bonus stat points, others items, depending on the type. There was even one about pulling weeds.
Sung-hoon nearly picked the stat point Sparrow Hunt but stopped himself. He'd chosen Rat Swarm Hunt half-jokingly and suffered for it just now.
He could poison rats, but how would he catch sparrows?
Sparrow Hunt looked way nastier than Rat Swarm. Rifling through the papers, he found one he could clear with his skills that rewarded stat points.
Rank: E
There's a saying that mad dogs need a stick. These aren't mad dogs, but wild dogs ruin the streets and threaten people. Hunt them.
Achievements:
1. Dog Catcher: Kill 3 wild dogs (0/3)
2. Hunter: Kill 10 wild dogs (0/10)
3. Massacre: Kill 30 wild dogs (0/30)
Base reward: 1,500 guild, Fame +1 (additional rewards per achievement).
Massacre mode first clear bonus: Bonus Stat Point +2
Wild dogs made him a bit uneasy, but they seemed easier than rats. At least he could swing his sword at dogs. Plus, he had the poison method from before.
"This one..."
"Um, excuse me."
As Sung-hoon reached to accept Wild Dog Hunt, someone tugged his clothes from behind. He turned to see a man with a longsword slung over his back and a woman cowering there, looking at him.
"What is it?"