Chapter 31 …
Whether Do-hyun was flustered or not, the two kept talking.
“Come on, no way it was really Kaiser. Probably just a fan.”
“True… but fan or not, it was satisfying seeing those guys get put in their place.”
“Huh? Wait. Then did that guy take down all three by himself?”
“Now that you mention it… those guys were at graduation level, right? Does that even make sense? If it was Raven Plains, the highest he could be is level 16.”
It was a reasonable doubt.
Common sense said there was no way a single user hunting in Raven Plains could beat three players who had already reached graduation level.
And they weren’t nobodies either—they were troublemakers who had been running wild.
Given their reputation as fairly skilled players in this bracket, suspicion was only natural.
“I heard the swordsman used Backstab or something.”
“They said one normal hit took half their HP.”
“They couldn’t even see the punch.”
The longer the trail of questions grew, the more nervous Do-hyun became inside.
‘What the heck. They were the ones doing the seal-clubbing, and they wrote all that down?’
He never expected them to have this little shame.
Objectively speaking, he hadn’t done anything wrong.
He hadn’t used hacks—he had simply given them the lesson they deserved.
‘It’ll be troublesome if rumors spread already.’
The problem was Do-hyun’s current position.
Even by his own standards, his class performance was far beyond the line.
On top of that, he possessed six traits.
The Shield Best party had been kind, and he hadn’t used other class skills back then, so it didn’t matter—but this time was different.
‘If this gets out now, leveling will get hard.’
A swordsman using assassin skills, possessing multiple traits, and dealing suspicious damage?
Attention would gather instantly.
Countless guilds would approach him; some would try to recruit him, while others would try to nip him in the bud.
There was no way they’d leave alone a seed that could steal their rice bowl.
‘If they can’t have it, they’ll break it. That’s how those guys think.’
He didn’t know what the top ten guilds here were like, but if many rankers were from Demrock, they wouldn’t be much different.
Actually, it wouldn’t even take the top ten guilds.
No matter where he went, there would be people itching to mess with him out of spite.
Maybe it would be different after he became strong enough—but right now, Do-hyun was still low level.
Even if the continent had level caps, if someone organized a proper hit squad and swarmed him, it would definitely hinder his growth.
‘It’s still too early.’
That was why he had planned to solo as much as possible for the time being.
But if this kept up, he might have to revise the plan—
“Pfft. People really spout the dumbest crap. Like that makes any sense.”
“Calling it hacks, my ass. If you’re gonna lie, at least make it believable. Who would buy that?”
“They’re just exaggerating because they’re embarrassed they got wrecked.”
“Is there any idiot who’d believe that?”
…Apparently, he’d been worrying for nothing.
Hearing their firm reactions, Do-hyun thought for a moment and then nodded.
‘Yeah… even I wouldn’t believe it.’
Who would reasonably think a hidden god-tier player was lurking around?
No matter how much some seal-clubber babbled, no one would take it seriously.
“Still, it is kind of amazing he beat them all alone. Even with good gear… he must be insanely skilled.”
“Well, maybe it was some graduation-level player hired on request. Those guys have made plenty of enemies.”
“Maybe? Oh, it’s our turn. Let’s grab the pendant.”
After the two passed by like a storm, Do-hyun’s turn approached.
Left alone, he quietly scratched his head.
“I’ll have to be more careful from now on.”
Things had gone smoothly this time, but you never knew with people.
Better safe than sorry.
Still, thanks to this, he learned about the Hero Guild and the situation with the seal-clubbers—so it had been worthwhile.
[You have obtained the Lost Pendant.]
[Please deliver the pendant to Camilla.]
“Alright, time to hit level 20.”
Do-hyun grinned as he held the pendant.
“Wow! That’s my pendant! Thank you so much! If it weren’t for you, I never would’ve found it! This is my most precious item. Since you’re nice, I’ll give you something!”
[Quest ‘Lost Pendant’ has been cleared.]
[You obtained 1 gold, a certain amount of EXP, and Camilla’s Small Gift.]
[Camilla’s Small Gift]
Grade: Normal+
Description: Camilla has a hobby of collecting unusual objects. This is a random box from her most treasured collection. No one knows what’s inside.
After handing over the pendant, Camilla jumped around in joy before tearfully hugging him tight.
She was the very image of an innocent young girl.
Even knowing she was an NPC made the moment heartwarming.
“Don’t lose it again.”
“Yes! Thank you so much! It’s really precious to me, so please take good care of it too!”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
“Hehe. Bye, big brother!”
When he patted her head with a fond uncle-like smile, Camilla beamed like a happy puppy.
[Title ‘Max Affinity From the Start?’ effect activates. Affinity increases further.]
[Camilla’s affinity has greatly increased.]
‘Is it because she’s young? It’s going up more.’
Perhaps because of her pure nature, the title’s effect seemed stronger on her.
Feeling once again that the effect could vary by NPC, Do-hyun moved on.
After parting with Camilla, he delivered the news to the next NPCs.
The second place he visited was Linda’s Potion Shop. Upon hearing about the western forest, she jumped in alarm.
“Goodness, the western forest is still so dangerous. No wonder he gets hurt so often… This won’t do. I need to tell him to quit being a scout immediately. Either he quits scouting or he quits our relationship…! Ah— ahem. Thank you for telling me, Apostle.”
[Quest ‘Exploring the Western Forest’ has been cleared.]
[You obtained 1 gold, a certain amount of EXP, 10 Low-grade HP Potions, and 10 Low-grade MP Potions.]
[Title ‘Max Affinity From the Start?’ effect activates. Affinity increases further.]
‘…I feel a bit bad for that scout.’
After all, Scout Zeke had just been pushed onto the brink of losing either his job or his girlfriend overnight.
Offering a brief moment of silence for him, Do-hyun headed to the last NPC, Zrinna.
True to the NPC who had made him want to mash the skip button, Zrinna’s welcome was… exceptional.
“Ohhh! You’ve slain all those vicious insects! Even skilled hunters struggle with them—truly impressive, impressive. I knew it from the moment I saw you. The spirit you carry is extraordinary!”
“Ah, yes…”
“You felt it too, didn’t you? The wickedness of those monsters! Even veteran hunters shudder at how much more vicious they are compared to the creatures of Raven Plains. How was it for you?”
“Uh… it was manageable.”
“As expected! Truly remarkable! Seeing you reminds me of my younger days—”
Listening to Zrinna chatter like a certain talkative baseball player, Do-hyun gave appropriate responses.
Then a tip from the strategy guide suddenly came to mind.
P.S. Even if you feel like punching Zrinna in the face, you must absolutely hold back. Remember my words. Absolutely.
There had been similar warnings in Arde’s guide about Kalde, so he thought she might have a similar personality…
…but she was an NPC who increased player aggression in a completely different way.
Honestly, she seemed even worse than he’d heard.
[Title ‘Max Affinity From the Start?’ effect activates. Affinity increases further.]
…
[Title ‘Max Affinity From the Start?’ effect activates. Affinity increases further.]
‘…This is one time it didn’t need to activate.’
Thanks to the title, she was pouring out friendliness with her full force.
About five minutes later, while he blankly half-listened and responded automatically—
“Hm! I think I can trust you with this request.”
The moment those words left her mouth, Do-hyun’s eyes finally focused.
‘Finally!’
He had been waiting for this moment.
As Zrinna slowly examined him with serious eyes and her lips parted, Do-hyun’s gaze grew desperate.
After what felt like an eternity—
“Though it’s a dangerous request… would you be willing to clear a dungeon?”
Ding—
[Quest ‘Exterminate Giant Insects’ has been cleared.]
[You obtained 1 gold and a certain amount of EXP.]
[Chain Quest ‘Dungeon Breakthrough’ has been generated.]
[Would you like to accept?]
Along with the refreshing notification, the chain quest appeared.
[Dungeon Breakthrough]
Grade: Rare
Description: Zrinna, who has always been wary of the western forest, fears the monsters will grow stronger if the dungeon is left alone too long. She believes someone who defeated the giant insects feared even by hunters might be able to conquer it. Successfully clear the dungeon.
Dungeon outside the west gate (0 / 1)
Clear Reward: 10 gold, a certain amount of EXP, 1 Low-grade Skill Draw Ticket
Failure Risk: Zrinna may be somewhat disappointed
Time Limit: 48 hours
A chain quest that even gave a skill draw ticket!
True to its rare grade, the gold reward was hefty, and since any dungeon in the western forest counted, every guide recommended clearing it.
‘If nothing else, this one is a must.’
Do-hyun agreed.
Even if it was only a low-grade ticket, quests that gave skill draw tickets were extremely rare.
A quest you could practically get for free like this was counted on one hand.
For low-level players short on skills, it was like rain in a drought.
“Someone like you will surely—”
“Of course. I’ll head to clear the dungeon right away—”
“Hm? I brewed some tea, at least have a cup—”
Pretending not to hear the voice behind him, Do-hyun hurried out and put as much distance as possible between himself and Zrinna’s house.
Only after moving about 200 meters did he organize his thoughts.
‘Let’s see… if we’re talking dungeons, those two are the main ones, right?’
The Goblin Chieftain’s Lair and the Ant Tunnel.
There were a few others, but these two were the most representative.
The difficulty was reasonable, and the rewards were the best.
‘Considering the Warrior set, the Goblin Chieftain’s Lair is better.’
A place similar to Arde’s Goblin Warrior habitat.
The moment you enter, goblins from various tribes welcome you, and after you clear about half of them, the Goblin Chieftain appears.
Since it was a normal boss, it wasn’t very difficult—but because of the boss’s traits, a mage was essential.
‘On the other hand, the Ant Tunnel absolutely needs a tank.’
As the name suggested, it was packed with giant ants.
Once you entered the burrow, waves of ants charged down a straight tunnel, and if you held out through five waves, the dungeon cleared.
Instead of a boss fight, it was all about numbers.
That made the tank’s role—soaking damage and holding aggro—extremely important.
Either choice wasn’t bad, but…
‘Neither of them is really appealing.’
One factor bothered him.
Both dungeons were party-type.
‘I’d rather not reveal my unique ability yet if I can help it.’
With the assassin incident spreading and all, he didn’t want to expose the Adventurer’s unique effects yet.
Well, the solution was simple.
‘Hide it.’
He just had to use skills from a single category.
He had plenty of choices for what class to pretend to be.
Greatsword, axe, dagger—three weapons—and the skills Charge Slash and Backstab.
At a glance, swordsman or assassin seemed the obvious picks, but it was too early to decide.
[Level Up!]
[You have reached level 20 and obtained a Random Skill Draw Ticket.]
The second random skill draw ticket landed in his hands.
Eyes shining at the long-awaited skill pack, Do-hyun clenched the card pack tightly and grinned.
‘Let’s see… what class skill I get.’
Like reading tarot cards, he spread the cards that would decide his class luck.
Ten cards fanned out in the air.
At the same time, a message appeared.
[Eye of Truth activates.]
‘Please… gold…!’
As he scanned from the left one by one, colors appeared.
Brown, brown, silver, brown…
Just as the parade of brown made his stomach drop, Do-hyun’s eyes widened at the very end.
