Chapter 10
Ned and I had unintentionally become partners in fate.
Because our character data had swapped, Neria GM said they couldn’t remove us from this cursed little town.
Originally, only I was supposed to be in this world, but due to the bug, Ned ended up here too. That meant only the two of us were present as players in this world.
And so, the only ones who could save us were each other.
I thought it would be simple: we’d each collect our crystals, meet up, and go, “Phew, hello! Now let’s smash this cursed thing and escape!”
But it turned out to be much more complicated.
The crystal that was supposed to be in the Papal Palace wasn’t there. Judging by NPC reactions, it seemed that the location hadn’t just been moved—it looked like the game’s settings had assigned it to a different place from the very beginning.
And that monster Ned got hit by, leaving him at half HP—even worse, it wasn’t in my hunting compendium—was a serious problem.
If we weren’t careful, Ned and I could easily end up dying separately on opposite sides of the continent.
“Still… maybe they’re monitoring us?”
After all, they launched this unprecedented event. Surely someone would be watching the players who fell into this world.
“Nope…”
My happy thoughts vanished in three seconds.
Let’s not expect the notoriously incompetent Uneria administration to save us.
It’s just the two of us.
I needed to meet up with Ned as fast as possible.
The crystal could wait. First, I needed to hit level 300, mount my dragon, and fly north.
At level 300, dragons wouldn’t listen perfectly—but there was no time to hesitate.
“All repaired. That’ll be 1,760 gold.”
“Ah, thank you.”
The blacksmith handed my equipment back politely. Of course, he wasn’t polite to me—he was polite to the equipment.
“But, have you heard of the monsters that appear in the Eastern Dungeon?”
My steps froze instinctively.
Usually, when NPCs started that line, it led to one of two things: “Please kill a few of them,” or “Bring me the items they drop.”
“I haven’t heard of them.”
I answered boldly. Those monsters gave good experience—but only up to level 247. At 248, I had to move elsewhere.
“Then listen. Near the dungeon, there’s a mineral called Avilite…”
The blacksmith clutched my shoulder firmly, not letting go.
I couldn’t help but watch his other hand. That hand could suddenly appear and press the quest accept button any second.
I’d been traumatized by beginner village elders before—so I was wary.
“…These days, it’s hard to get. The castle soldiers help, but that alone isn’t enough.”
He let out a deep sigh and glanced at me—this was definitely a quest.
“So… could someone strong like you lend a hand? Without Avilite, I can’t repair high-grade equipment.”
“Hm…”
High-grade repairs are no small matter. I gave him a subtle nod.
The Eastern Dungeon wasn’t too far from my level. It wouldn’t be the fastest leveling route, but considering repairs, it was necessary.
And for Thor’s sword, this blacksmith was the only one capable of fixing it.
I nodded.
“Alright.”
“Great! Then kill 999 of the dungeon monsters called ‘Meraia’!”
“Excuse me?”
999? You said just a little! If there were 999 Meraia near the dungeon, the castle would’ve been overrun long ago.
Basically, I was being told to sit in front of the dungeon until the 999th Meraia respawned and keep killing them.
“Should I just ignore it?”
My inner demon began singing a triple-chorus of “Just screw that quest,” but I couldn’t.
Repairs were the issue. Without completing this quest, the blacksmith would only ask about the quest progress whenever I visited—not offer repairs. Dammit!
“Can’t help it.”
[Quest acquired: ‘The Blacksmith’s Dilemma’]
*[The Blacksmith’s Dilemma
Kill 999 Meraia (0/999)]*
I accepted the quest. But I wasn’t going to kill them politely.
Sometimes, one step back is necessary for eight steps forward.
Uneria had dozens of crafting skills.
Among them, I chose “Potion Production” for my eight-steps-forward plan.
“Uni, why do you carry all these potions every time?”
“I want to do some research.”
Explaining skills to an NPC usually gets only a tilt of the head, so I kept it simple.
“Alright, good luck then.”
Normally, I’d have chatted more to increase favorability, but there was no time.
I stuffed the potions into my inventory and ran out of the alchemist’s house.
“Gotta master it fast.”
Potion Production was notoriously difficult for newbies—a notorious entry barrier in Uneria.
But after mastering enough terrible skills, this one seemed trivial.
Besides, I’d helped several newbies master it before. I already knew the training method.
The reason was simple:
“Life in games, like life in reality, is all about connections.”
Connections make life easier.
I quickly mastered the skill and crafted the item I wanted.
[‘Ravis’ produced successfully!]
I hadn’t wanted to bother leveling the skill, but now I shook the potion and muttered:
“Life should be easy and simple.”
“Ah, you’re back. Did the number of Meraia near the Eastern Dungeon go down?”
The blacksmith looked at me, disappointed.
“None caught? Then I can’t get Avilite!”
Where does this NPC’s uncanny ability to estimate the number of monsters I’ve killed come from?
But today wasn’t about that.
“Come on, people can’t just live thinking about work. I thought you might have been tired, so I brought this.”
I pulled my secret weapon from my inventory. Not a laser gun, of course.
“Oh, such a precious item…”
The blacksmith’s face lit up.
It was a potion called Ravis—commonly used to increase NPC favorability.
“Let’s drink it together and chat, alright?”
I plopped into the chair he pulled over and shared about 20 bottles of Ravis with him.
Finally, the blacksmith grabbed my shoulder.
“Where are you going!”
“You should work. I’ll go hunt Meraia.”
“Oh, Meraia, pfft!”
He patted the chair I’d been sitting in, smiling kindly.
“Plenty of soldiers in the castle! The castle has survived so far, they’ll handle it. Sit and listen a bit more!”
Then the quest clear window appeared—normally only triggered after killing 999 Meraia.
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
The experience I got from NPC favor doubled what I would have gotten from 999 kills alone.
Right, easy and simple.
I smiled at the blacksmith and sat back down.
Balancing questing and monster hunting, I quickly reached level 300.
Don’t ask how many Ravis I used—but it didn’t cost 30,000 gold.
[Entering Celestial Realm: Dragon’s Nest]
As soon as I hit 300, I dashed to the sky bridge leading to the Celestial Realm.
Normally, only level 400+ characters could come here—but I couldn’t afford to wait.
The longer I delayed, the more I worried about our lost newbie, who might end up dead somewhere.
“Please, Ned… even if you get lost, just be somewhere visible. Preferably a village…”
I prayed as I entered the Dragon’s Nest.
[Dragon’s Nest: Use special skills to tame dragons]
“It’s been a while since a human came this far. Those who neglect training can barely breathe here. How is it?”
The Sky Bridge NPC, Mydin, asked.
“Not bad.”
I shrugged. Breathing was fine.
I recalled that characters below level 299 supposedly couldn’t survive here. At level 300, suddenly the lungs—or something—improved. Hard to understand.
“Good. Be careful.”
Mydin checked I was safe and quickly flew down the bridge.
Alone in the Celestial Realm, I looked around.
“Hmm…”
The Celestial Realm, true to its name, was above the clouds. Dragons roamed freely, living well.
And intruding was… me.
“Sorry, kids.”
But urgency didn’t wait. I scanned my surroundings.
