Rookie Hunting (3)

Flinch!

The woman's eyes went wide, and she scooted backward on her rear, putting distance between herself and Woobin.

"Wh-who are you?"

Her face was a mask of pure confusion, as if she couldn't make sense of anything around her. Then again, she'd probably still been half ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out of her mind.

"Don't you remember? How you nearly died back there—"

Woobin raised his index finger to offer a rough explanation.

At the tip of that finger lay a man reduced to nothing but a head, and beside it a corpse whose upper body had been blasted apart, leaving nothing but legs.

The woman startled at the sight and doubled over, retching.

Before long she seemed to collect herself, scrunching her face and fixing him with an anxious stare.

"You said you'd help me. How could a person do that to another person—"

She shot Woobin a look brimming with disgust.

Apparently she hadn't understood a word of what he'd been getting at. And he had been planning to win her goodwill under the banner of having saved her life, too.

Woobin let out a long sigh and rose to his feet.

Even if he explained, she likely wouldn't listen, and he had no patience for the hassle of persuasion. In moments like these, it was always better to exploit the other party's disadvantages than to apply pressure directly.

That woman's weaknesses: isolation, ignorance, and fear.

"I go to the trouble of saving your life, and this is what I get. This is exactly why you shouldn't help people."

Leaving that hint behind, Woobin strode off through the brush without a moment's hesitation.

Left alone, the woman stared at his receding back.

"Huh? Y-you helped me?"

As the man she'd taken for an assailant walked away without a fuss, her thoughts finally began to unscramble.

She hadn't noticed at first—his golden armor and boots had caught her eye instead—but something about him had been different from the thug who'd attacked her.

The man who'd beaten her and killed her companion was in his fifties. This one wasn't. At most, he looked early-to-mid thirties. Then who was he?

"Ah."

It came back to her.

The mysterious man she'd crossed paths with in the forest while fleeing from the murderer.

At the time she'd assumed he was the murderer's accomplice, but apparently not.

He'd stayed by her side until she woke, and there was nothing wrong with her body.

Did that mean he'd saved her? If so, she couldn't let him walk away.

"W-wait just a moment!"

Having rapidly untangled the mess of her situation, the woman scrambled after Woobin in a rush.

"I must have misunderstood. I'm sorry. I didn't even realize you'd helped me."

The woman bobbed her head again and again.

"I'm truly sorry. I know it's shameless of me, but please help me one more time."

She clasped Woobin's hand tight as she pleaded. Her fingers were shaking badly—she was clearly desperate.

"There are three more people stranded out there besides me. I don't know anything about this place, so I really need your help."

Woobin pressed down hard on the corner of his mouth as it curled upward at her words.

Three more targets to farm. There couldn't have been a better setup—but he needed to nail things down first.

"And why exactly should I help you?"

"Huh? W-well, that's..."

Unable to commit to an answer, the woman scrambled for words.

"If you help me, I'll be sure to repay you."

"And what exactly would you give me?"

"If you need money, I'll give you as much as you want."

"I don't need money. And I don't take payment after the fact."

"What?"

"Th-then what do you..."

When Woobin stared levelly into the woman's face, she suddenly seemed to realize something, flushing scarlet and covering her chest with both arms.

Apparently she'd interpreted his intentions in an entirely different direction.

Sure enough. Her expression flipped to contempt, and she rounded on him.

"Y-you've got the wrong idea about me! What era do you think this is? Trading my body for—"

"I said something useful, not that. Anyone who's posted on the community boards should have a rough grasp of the system, or so I assumed."

"S-something useful..."

"I'm talking about rewards. The rewards sitting in your inventory."

The woman's eyebrows twitched, visibly rattled, before she finally began to answer.

"My inventory? I barely know anything about it. The men who were with me said the community worked like a game and showed me how to post, but... I haven't really played many games."

Desperation piled up on the woman's face, layer by layer. The mood had turned completely in his favor.

"Haah... fine. First, do exactly as I tell you."

The woman nodded reluctantly, her eyes still brimming with wariness.

"I'll walk you through the system. Say the name of whatever you want to use out loud—or just picture it in your head—and it'll appear before your eyes. Open your inventory and take out everything inside."

Woobin began walking her through the system, and in less than five minutes he had every piece of information he wanted.

This is insane.

Ding—

The woman's name was Min Joo-hee—the same one who'd posted on the community boards.

Her starting stats were absurd from the very beginning.

Her HP, MP, and stamina were ten times higher than Woobin's, and every one of her stats sat roughly fifteen points higher as well.

Of course, stats could be bought with runes, but this was far beyond what starter support should have been.

And yet Woobin barely registered Min Joo-hee's stats at all.

Trait: [Will of Transcendence]. Privilege: [18th Batch Privilege].

Because the two effects Min Joo-hee carried were simply too broken.

First, the trait.

The effect was simple.

Targets that had reached MAX—in other words, it seemed to be an ability that granted something to items leveled all the way up, past the point where they could grow any further.

What kind of power would be granted?

Could it actually do away with the level 10 cap? Or bestow an entirely new effect?

It was the kind of effect that made him want to test it on the spot.

And no wonder—nearly everything Woobin owned qualified as a valid target, starting with the skill cards in his possession and running through soul stones, mounts, even consumable items you could eat.

But what drew his eye even more than the trait was the 18th Batch Privilege.

An effect that could only be described as insane.

EXP, runes, even item drop rate—every single one boosted by 200%. However late her start, this was cheat-code territory.

But the true heart of the privilege lay elsewhere.

*This effect also applies to all party members.

A cheat-tier effect that anyone could enjoy simply by forming a single party with her.

He could feel the system's intent behind it.

An intent to protect the 18th batch hero—not as a competitor, but as a companion to fight alongside.

Not bad.

It was radical enough that even Woobin, a man sharpening his blade for revenge, concluded he had to take this woman with him.

If that effect had been active back when he brought down the Iron Golem, he'd have walked away with a full two million runes—and his level would have been twenty higher besides.

"Then I'll open it now."

The last thing to check was the starter crate sitting in her inventory.

Min Joo-hee opened the crate with a tense expression, and the instant brilliant light burst forth—fwoosh—items came springing out.

Four items in total.

Ding—

Whoa...

Woobin inspected the items while keeping his expression hidden as best he could.

The Skill Slot Expansion Ticket was one thing, but the other three items were good enough to hold their own against a top ranker's gear even now.

The mount in particular set Woobin's mouth watering.

Summons Fenrir, does it?

Fenrir was the highest-grade spirit beast among the wind spirits—a monster hailed as one of the finest mounts in existence.

And they simply handed that to a rookie hero who'd only just arrived. He wanted it. He wanted to take it.

"Are these any good?"

Just as Woobin failed to smother his admiration at the items, Min Joo-hee asked, her face full of worry.

How should he answer? Say they were mediocre? Or tell her the truth?

"They're excellent. If I had to put it in terms you'd understand—think top-shelf luxury goods."

There was no reason to lie.

"Really? Phew... thank goodness. So does that mean you'll help me?"

"As I mentioned before—payment up front."

"Ah, right... then what should I give you..."

The woman fidgeted helplessly over the items laid out before her.

Was anyone really this soft? Dithering in the middle of a negotiation—it was almost laughable.

Woobin scooped up every item in front of Min Joo-hee.

"What? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠You're taking all of them...?"

Min Joo-hee's gaze fluttered in her fluster. She looked exactly like a child whose candy had been snatched away.

"Yes."

"B-but... every last one..."

So she wasn't quite the fool who'd let herself be robbed with her eyes wide open after all.

Truthfully, he had no use for the Legacy of the Fire Mage or Destruction Ray. But there was something he wanted to make certain of.

"So? Are you refusing to hand them over?"

"No, it's not that..."

"Then say it straight. Nothing gets you treated like a disposable fool faster than being underestimated around here."

"......"

"The things you're handing over right now, Miss Joo-hee, might be what keeps you alive. They might be rarities you'll never get to touch again. So I'll ask you once more."

Woobin fixed Min Joo-hee with a glacial stare.

"Give me all of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠them."

At that, Min Joo-hee dropped her eyes to the ground and bit down hard on her lip. Before long, her trembling gaze went still. She'd made up her mind.

"No."

"..."

"I can't give you everything. Pick just two."

At the sight of her, a dry chuckle escaped Woobin.

"Very well. I'll take these two."

Woobin chose Fenrir's Saddle and the Skill Slot Expansion Ticket, then handed the rest back.

"What?"

Min Joo-hee took the items back in a daze, apparently never having expected him to actually return them.

Well, if it came to that, he could always take them later.

He had no idea how things would unfold, but if he was going to bring Min Joo-hee along for the sake of her privilege, a spineless temperament was out of the question.

Nothing in this world irritated him quite like dithering.

Ding—

The moment Woobin moved with the items in hand, a message popped up before him.

"Didn't some kind of warning just appear in front of you?"

"Yes. It says Player Kang Woobin has taken the expansion ticket and the saddle."

"Then relinquish ownership, please."

Ding—

Min Joo-hee seemed to select something in midair, and just like that, the expansion ticket's ownership vanished. From then on, anyone could use the item.

"You really are going to help me, right?"

As Woobin pocketed the expansion ticket, Min Joo-hee asked, her eyes brimming with doubt.

With three more targets left to farm, why on earth would he walk away?

Woobin fired off a party invitation on the spot.

Ding—

A simple information window floated up above Min Joo-hee's head.

"Being in a party means we're on the same side now, right?"

"That's right. I'll look after you until your safety is guaranteed."

At Woobin's firm answer, Min Joo-hee let out a breath of relief.

"Let's hurry! Everyone will be waiting!"

She made to dash off somewhere at once—and Woobin stopped her.

"There's one more thing I need to check."

Because a single element remained that he absolutely had to put to the test.

Ding—

He needed to confirm exactly what effect that woman's trait produced.

"Please use your trait."

"My trait? One moment..."

Min Joo-hee floundered at his instruction.

She'd never used it once, so naturally she had no idea how. Yet perhaps spurred on by Woobin's prodding, she began wrestling with it on her own, like a new hire handed her very first task.

In under a minute, a line of text surfaced in the empty air.

Ding—

Fwoosh—

Along with the searing light, at the message that bloomed before his eyes, the corner of Woobin's mouth curled upward.

This is insane.