by Park Saenal
“Goodbye.”
Yang Fei said goodbye to Grid at the entrance of the restaurant. Grid smiled as nicely as possible.
“Yes, thank you. I’ll come again in the evening.”
The first friend in Grid’s life was an NPC. Even his wife and friends were NPCs. It meant he was an expert when dealing with NPCs. He was confident that he could quickly raise his affinity with Yang Fei. But in reality, it was only half right. It was true that Yang Fei was started to like Grid better, but it wasn’t for the reason he thought.
She had the Making a Living Detection skill. She was aware of Grid’s nature.
‘A customer who orders without looking at the menu.’
Grid had ordered the cheapest tea. He never asked for the menu. Yang Fei had a chance to deceive him. In fact, it wasn’t the cheapest tea, but the second cheapest.
‘Selling citron tea every time he comes in…’
It seemed she would barely be able to receive this month’s salary. She didn’t have to let her thoughtless sisters and brother starve.
‘Sigh.’ Grid sighed as he watched Yang Fei. ‘I am lacking impact. It’s time to deepen this relationship.’
Grid released the power of his hands.
“Yang Fei, I think that your shoulders are too tense. Come here.”
“…?”
All of a sudden, touching her shoulders? Yang Fei tilted her head with confusion. Grid exerted his legendary hand techniques. He approached Yang Fei in an instant, aiming precisely at her shoulders and pressing firmly. Yang Fei’s expressionless face changed for the first time.
“Ahak!”
Grid saw Yang Fei as a young girl, but based on Satisfy, she was at an age to marry. However, Yang Fei wasn’t in a position to dream about marriage. Her sisters had to marry and leave the house first. In this case, it was likely that she would miss her prime age to marry. Yang Fei thought she would never feel the happiness of a woman for her whole life. But right now…
‘Ahh, this feeling must be…!’
She had to feed her family, not think about romance. She only knew theories about relationships with men. Now, she finally experienced it in reality. Every time Grid’s fingertips touched her skin, she could feel the same sensation she got when reading books. Yes, this feeling…
Omitted.
“Hah… Hah…”
The expressionless face was gone. Only joy filled Yang Fei’s face as she flushed and gasped for breath. Her most and trembling eyes stared at Grid.
“How is it? Did your fatigue go away?”
“…Yes.”
“I’m glad. I’ll do it whenever we meet.”
“…!”
It was a massage for Grid, but Yang Fei thought differently.
‘Doing this naughty act every time we meet…?’
It was embarrassing. But she couldn’t refuse.
‘Ah, I have become corrupt.’
Yang Fei was feeling confused.
On the other hand, Grid headed for the White Hammer smithy. He didn’t ask for any accommodations. For him, the smithy was the best place to stay and work.
‘There are 15 hours left until the blacksmith competition. I will trim the Queen Rat’s Fur and eat Idan’s dishes.’
***
“Did you see the system message from two days ago?”
“Of course. Wasn’t there the message about the 31st visitor?”
“That’s right. He’s alone.”
“He must have little information about the East Continent, which is why he dared come alone.”
“How foolish. Kukuk, I don’t know who he is, but it’s good. We can eat properly.”
A pub in Pangea. Players were sitting in a corner and laughing wickedly.
Chapter 526
Chapter 526
The means of moving from the West Continent to the East Continent was estimated to be very diverse. But to date, the only clear method was to use the Behen Archipelago.
This was a difficult task.
How many people had used the Behen Archipelago to cross over to the East Continent? Over the past three years, there had been only 30. This was 30 out of two billion users. Behen Archipelago was a one player instant dungeon. It was an area difficult to break through, making a person feel pride just from reaching the 10th island.
In other words, the players who made it to the East Continent were great. Of course, there were some exceptions. There were a few ‘lucky’ enough to meet Fog Island early on and managed to cross over to the East Continent.
***
‘I was the strongest on the West Continent.’
‘Who would’ve imagined that I couldn’t even leave the starter village?’
‘Shit, my bad luck. If I knew the East Continent was this type of place, I would’ve never come.’
‘I thought I was lucky to meet Fog Island earlier than others…’
A shabby tavern on Pangea’s North Street. There were some men who were lamenting. The four people sitting down at a table and drinking were all players. They were level 310 ‘beginners’ who arrived on the East Continent a month ago, but hadn’t yet escaped Pangea.
“That damn Kraugel.”
The ultimate goal they had when they quickly crossed to the East Continent. It wasn’t just levelling. By clearing new content first, they would monopolize all types of titles, skills, and hidden items. This was the goal they pursued on the East Continent. But it was too late by the time they arrived on the East Continent.
Pangea, the starter village in the East Continent, had already been swept away by Kraugel. Pangea entered a new episode in the aftermath and the difficulty rose exponentially.
“The moment that a player comes from the West Continent, Pangea will experience a crisis. That player will become a hero by repelling the monsters that invaded Pangea…”
Once again, the first person had the advantage. It was clear that as the first visitor to Pangea, Kraugel received a huge benefit. Due to that, they became the dogs chasing after the chicken.
‘How rotten… I’ve been in Pangea for a month and never once received a special quest. Kraugel alone obtained all the crucial quests.’
‘It would be best to leave Pangea and advance into a new territory, but…’
The monsters in the north had been growing steadily since being defeated by Kraugel. Now they were too strong.
‘With our skills, it will be hard to move north…’
‘Ah, that asshole Kraugel.’
They couldn’t achieve their original purpose in the present Pangea. Kraugel had cleared most of the hidden quests and the environment became too difficult. Anyway, moving to a new area was the best way. The problem was that it was impossible to move outside Pangea. They had to move north, but it wasn’t possible because the big and powerful hamsters were spread out in the north.
“There are quests to run errands in the neighborhood and also to catch monsters near here, so the levelling up is quite good.”
“Yes, we’re definitely growing. We’re much better than when we first came here. The renowned Seven Guilds and rankers of Overgeared are probably weaker than us.”
“The East Continent is great. But we’ll just die in front of the Queen Rat. We can’t catch the Queen Rat.”
But.
“If we take advantage of the new arrival on the East Continent, we’ll be able to break through the monster community while the Queen Rat is distracted.”
They hadn’t just been playing around during the past month. They completed all types of miscellaneous quests in order to discover the weakness of the Queen Rat. Then they achieved results. The Queen Rat was partial to the ‘golden walnut.’
“Did you obtained the promised number of golden walnuts?”
“Yes, I have 10.”
“It adds up to 40… This should be sufficient.”
“Damn, what type of walnut is so expensive? I went broke from buying this.”
“I also spent all my money playing this game.”
As the nam
e suggested, the golden walnut shone gold. The taste and nutritional value was comparable to ordinary walnuts, but the effect was enormous. When it was eaten, it increased all stats by 10% for an hour and had an average chance of permanently increasing a stat by 5 points. It was the strongest buff potion, while also demonstrating half the efficiency of an elixir. It was a fantastic thing that any player would want to have.
But the price was ridiculously expensive. The quantity was too limited because it was difficult to obtain. It was also a snack enjoyed by the nobles and royalty of all kingdoms on the East Continent. The price? A huge 160,000 gold. It was 160,000 gold for one! When converted to won, this small walnut cost at least 2 million won for one.
No matter how great, the ‘elixir’ effect wasn’t guaranteed. Unless a person was rich or a gambling addiction, they would never buy the golden walnut.
“Hah… We have to give such an expensive item to a monster.”
“Stop it. We have to consider it a worthy investment.”
“Those who left Pangea clearly used this walnut.”
We will be able to achieve our desired goal if we can get beyond Pangea, obtaining a land of gold. It was worth investing the money if they could obtain one good item, title, or skill. If they got stronger and returned to the West Continent, they would soon become rich. The players were filled with anticipation.
Then someone came up to them.
“Eh? Are you users?”
It was a black-haired man with a sturdy body. He was around 181cm tall. The wide shoulders, flat chest, and muscles made it an ideal body. Of course, this man was also a player. However, his ID was covered. It was because the man had covered up more than half his face with a black mask.
‘This guy is the newbie who just came to the East Continent.’
‘Our target came to find us, isn’t this big?’
The players were excited, but tried not to show it. They greeted the man with a polite attitude.
“I’m surprised. I didn’t expect to meet another player like us on the East Continent.”
“You came all the way to the East Continent, so you must have a considerably high level? It’s nice to meet you.”
“But what is with that mask?”
“Is it an item for decoration? It’s nice that it looks somewhat threatening. But isn’t it uncomfortable to cover your vision…?”
There were greetings and questions. The man scratched his head in an awkward manner.
“I was called a sexual molester by the guards and chased, so I have to wear the mask for a while. I’m sorry, but please pretend to be my companions for a while.”
“????”
Introducing himself as a molester at the beginning of the conversation? It wasn’t exactly sexual harassment but a ‘molester.’ Was there any thief who would admit that he was a thief? No. The fact that he wore the mask and was being chased by guards meant he really was a molester.
The players were embarrassed.
‘I’ve heard rumors that there are players who molest NPCs in the game, but I never expected to meet such a trash person.’
The man who was a trash molester wore a bizarre laughing mask that covered half his face. That man was currently very upset. It happened after he gave Yang Fei a massage at the entrance of Idan’s restaurant. He was chased by guards while heading to the smithy? He was framed as a molester who harassed women in public.
‘Shit… What is this?’
His legendary dexterity. It was incredibly useful depending on the use, but the risk was also great. Grid realized that he should seal the use of his hands in public. He avoided the guards by entering the tavern and came across four players.
‘Lane, Mook, Evan, and Oshihoz.’
The four players were strange. Since they crossed to the East Continent, they must at least have their third advancement. But their IDs and faces were unfamiliar, so they must be unofficial rankers.
‘I met them by chance, but I should obtain some information from them.’
The Grid of the past would’ve tried to take advantage of them. But now Grid could have moderately good human relations like an ordinary person.
“Do you know any good hunting grounds? Sit at the bar and unburden your hearts.”
‘Oh.’
The eyes of the four players sparkled. It was a very nice situation because the prey approached by himself.
‘It’s tough since we don’t know his identity.’
Maybe he was on guard and concealed his identity from the beginning. The players suppressed their curiosity in order to trap the man in the mask.
“Yes, we got a huge jackpot today.”
“Ever since coming to the East Continent, it feels like being in heaven every day. We made a huge amount of money and experience.”
“We know a lot of good hunting grounds. Well, since you’re a skilled player who made it to the East Continent, your ability to find hunting grounds should be excellent.”
Grid’s eyes shone from behind the mast.
‘Incredibly good hunting ground!’
Grid’s ultimate goal behind coming to the East Continent was to level up. Grid had no choice but to be interested in these words.
‘In fact, I have been on the East Continent for less than three days and don’t know that much…’
If the players knew this truth, they might not let him in. Grid made a bluff. He couldn’t expose his current situation. He needed to act with the dignity of the leader of Overgeared.
“Of course I know a few good hunting grounds. Do you want to share information with each other?”
‘What would he know?’
The players knew when the masked man arrived on the East Continent. This newbie was trying to trick them without knowing he was the one being deceived.
“Ah, should we? It would be good for both of us. Okay. Players in a strange land should help each other out.”
“That’s right, that’s right. The hunting grounds are very large and there won’t be any damage from adding one more person.”
The players smiled widely and spoke to Grid.
“We happened to finish our food and drinks while talking. We’ll be happy to lead you to a hunting ground.”
Grid readily accepted. “That sounds good. Later, I will share information about hunting grounds with you.”
The players grinned wickedly at Grid. They left the tavern and headed northwards towards the community of big poisonous rats.
Grid was astonished.
‘Ah, what? This is the good hunting ground?’
Certainly, the community of big poisonous rats was ‘good.’ But not after the Queen Rat was killed. After the Queen Rat died, the respawned big poisonous rats were much weaker. Their average level fell by 30 and they didn’t give as much experience.
‘I wanted a place other than here.’
Grid clicked his tongue.
‘Heok? What the?’
‘Why are the hamsters so weak?’
‘It’s so exhilarating. I don’t know what changed with the hamsters, but it is likely that the Queen Rat is still strong. Has the illusion magic been used on the walnut?’
‘Yes, there is no way for that guy to tell that this is a golden walnut. Even a top rated appraisal item will only display it as a simple walnut.’
It was good that a newbie who could become bait had appeared in front of them. The players believed their plan would be successful. Of course, it was a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding that was likely to be good for Grid.
Chapter 527
Chapter 527
Mook had considered himself a lucky person. He had felt confident about this since encountering Fog Island on the 7th island of the Behen Archipelago. However, that idea had changed since coming to the East Continent. It was a environment different from what he expected. The difficulty was beyond imagination. Due to this, Mook was isolated in Pangea for a month.
‘Ah, I really have no luck.’
He crossed over to the East
Continent just to run errands for the NPCs and take care of easy mobs? The situation was different from what he imagined. It would have been better if he hadn’t come here. The days when he was a high ranking player on the West Continent were much more interesting.
It was bad luck, not good luck, that he encountered Fog Island. This damn East Continent, he wanted to get away from it. But it wasn’t a decision that could be easily made. Mook only had two East Continent Portal Scrolls. It was a phenomenon caused by lacking points because he encountered Fog Island too soon.
Mook spent his days in Pangea feeling frustration. Then that thought once again changed today.
‘I am really lucky!’
Why had the hamsters weakened overnight?
‘Heaven is helping me!’
The hamster hunt was very easy. Before, there were dangerous moments because he had to fight two every time. Then he would have to rest for a few minutes after hunting four or five. Even if he didn’t manage his stamina or mana, the hamsters were so weak that he could hunt for 30 minutes without stopping.
Of course, the amount of experience that they gave was lower. However, the number of hamsters that could be hunted at the same time was greatly increased. In the process of advancing to the center of the monster community, they steadily gained experience. The gallbladders also dropped constantly, so he could probably achieve a 30% poison and confusion resistance.
‘Should I just stay here and hunt? If I could increase my poison resistance to 30%, I will be able to catch the poisonous trolls on the West Continent that I couldn’t before.’
Honestly, the golden walnuts were too valuable to be wasted like this.
‘It’s better to save the golden walnuts… Isn’t this better?’
Even spoke as Mook started to feel conflicted. “We can raise our level on the West Continent. And the gallbladder of the big poisonous rats can be collected later. Don’t forget our purpose. Our real purpose is to gain titles, skills, and items first.”
Lane agreed. “Evan is correct. Mook, don’t get bogged down by the immediate benefits. We have an obligation to escape from Pangea.”
“It’s important to act quickly to monopolize various benefits first. The gap with the front runners can’t become bigger. We might be chasing after them forever.”