by Yoo Seong
Agility was, for the most part, a stat most professions needed. As it was a good thing that beginners invest all their points in agility, Ark came to a conclusion.
‘There, now I should be able to leisurely start hunting Wild Dogs.’
Ark was just about to turn his body away, while wearing a satisfied smile.
“But hey, don’t you perhaps have any thoughts of trying a new job?”
“What? Didn’t you say there wasn’t any work?”
“No, well, it’s not village work, but there’s a job that bothers me a little…”
Ark turned around with an interested expression.
Until now, he hadn’t heard about anyone receiving a quest from Hansen besides the village ones. Nonetheless, after completing over three hundred mice assassination quests, Ark had also received only village quests. However, for the first time, he had received a different commission from Hansen.
‘Is it a quest available only after you’ve received the Mouse Hunter title?’
So to speak, it was the first. It was a given he was interested. Having already received a title and bonus stats, he was so happy he could hardly contain it. Ark quickly replied to Hansen.
“If it’s Grandpa’s request, I’ll do any work no matter what it is.”
“Thank you. But to be honest, even I can’t make a judgement on what this opportunity is. I’m not sure how dangerous it will be either. This was the reason why I couldn’t bring it up until now. Anyway, if you are willing to do it, look for the bar owner, Kraydon, and ask for the details.”
The Bar Owner Kraydon’s WorriesThe bar owner Kraydon has been agonizing over a new worry for several days. Meet him and listen to his situation.
Level of Difficulty: —
“I will go look for him right away.”
Ark bowed and set off for the bar.
“Oh, Ark. As expected, it’s you who came.”
Kraydon greeted him with a welcoming voice.
Ark was probably the first user he’d called by name.
“Yes. Hi, how are you? So, I heard there’s some kind of problem?”
“Indeed. No, no there isn’t. To be honest, it’s not enough to call it a problem… Over the past few days I’ve been hearing some strange talk.”
“Strange talk?”
“As you know, mice have continued to appear no matter how many you’ve killed recently. You should know how much I suffered because of that, right?”
‘I’m the one who suffered. While receiving just 10 pieces of bread.’
Ark had a fit of anger, but on the surface he laughed naively and nodded his head.
“I know. But isn’t it okay these days?”
“It’s a little quieter. However, only a few days ago, I heard some strange talk from some guests. You know the Harilal mountain in this area, right? While crossing that mountain, they discovered a strange cave. Do you know what they said was inside the cave? The vile mice. They said a really unbelievable number of mice were living there.”
“Then has that swarm of mice been coming to the village from that cave?”
“There’s a high possibility that’s the case. But if tourists’ words were true, we should take action.”
Kraydon scratched his beard and gave Ark a look.
It was a look that hoped Ark would look into the details.
“Is it fine if I investigate that cave?”
“That’s right. If it’s the one who received the title of Mouse Hunter, I can entrust it to you.”
This guy can spread rumours throughout town quickly.
“Ok, I’ll take a look at once.”
Ark accepted without much thought. Then, his request window changed to ‘Unknown Cave Exploration.’ The difficulty level rose from ‘—’ to ‘G’ but he didn’t pay much attention to it. In the information he’d looked up, G difficulty quests were about the level of catching Wild Dogs.
“I’m thankful. Since I’ve found out the approximate area, I’ll mark it on your map.”
After Kraydon had finished what he was saying, the map window spread out.
The enormously large map was mostly black, and only the areas surrounding Harun were lit up. In the inner part of the Harilal mountain chain surrounding the village, there was a blinking light. As expected, it was an area that he’d never seen even once in the information sites.
So to speak, it was a hidden dungeon!
It was common knowledge that dungeons were treasure houses for items.
Although because it was a G difficulty quest in a beginning village he could not hope for an impressive item, for Ark who was equipping a rusted sword, even a single broken shield would be a big treasure.
Above all, discovering a dungeon no one else knew about held an impressive sense of achievement.
Ark then left the bar in a hurry to prepare for his journey.
‘I guess I should organize these now.’
There were a lot of odds and ends filling up his bag.
The 3 leathers and meat he’d gained while catching wolves and the 10 wheat breads he’d gained each time he completed one of three hundred mice-killing quests.
At first, he had eaten them as he’d received them, but after he started killing mice with ease the wheat breads accumulated. It was to the point that he would eat 1~2 of them when his satiety dropped all the way to the bottom.
And so after a while he had accumulated over 1000 wheat breads.
Even though they were stored by 100 pieces each, there wasn’t any room for other items.
‘I’ll leave 100 pieces securely in my bag and let’s sell the rest.’
Ark went to the General Merchandise store and sold his wheat bread. Originally the wheat bread was a product that couldn’t be sold once it was bought.
But thanks to his maximum intimacy, there was no impossibility for Ark. Each wheat bread was worth 1 copper piece.
Of course, if he’d sold them to users, he’d receive 2 copper pieces, but he couldn’t not afford to waste time for just a copper piece difference. For Ark, who only had a limited time to play the game, time was of the essence.
Selling 2000 wheat breads yielded 20 silvers.
Ark used that money to repair his equipment and left for the Harilal mountains.
* * *
1. A bowl of black bean noodles costs around 5 dollars.
FIRST DUNGEON
* * *
*Yowwwl!*
With a yelp, the Wolf’s body was split in half.
The bodies of the Wolves slowly turned into fragments, dropping leather and meat.
Ark gathered the spoils and opened his Status Window.
Character Name
Ark
Race
Human
Fame
50
Level
5
Profession
None
Title
Mouse Hunter
Health
155
Mana
100
Strength
26
Agilitiy
36
Stamina
26
Wisdom
16
Intelligence
16
Luck
16
“Looks like I can deal with a Wolf without too much of a problem.”
Even after receiving the request, Ark didn’t immediately head off to the cave.
Although the dungeon was supposedly in the area around the starting village, a level two player couldn’t be conceited enough to stroll up and down wherever he wanted. There was no knowing what dangers there might be.
The bitter experience of death penalties was a mistake Ark did not want to repeat. Therefore, he could only be at ease by gaining some levels before reaching the cave.
On the second day of dedicating himself to hard-core hunting, Ark finally reached level 5.
He invested all of the stat points from level 3 into Agility, and then raised his stre
ngth to increase his attack power. Lastly, he put 10 points into Stamina to increase his Health. Since every point of Stamina raised his Health by 5, it was now at 155.
This may be obvious, but Ark had become much stronger.
At first, his life had gone down by 30 when he was scratched by a Wolf, but now it was down to about 20. Besides, he had gained exceptional fighting experience from defeating at least ten thousand Mice!
If he was lucky, he could kill one Wolf after losing only 70 Health. It was something normal users at level five couldn’t even be able to imagine.
As he hunted the way he wanted without a hitch, his confidence also rose.
‘Should I slowly head over to the cave now?’
Ark rose from his seat. Only 30 wheat breads were left out of the 100 he had prepared.
He drank water whenever needed, but he had been hard-pressed to do so with the wheat breads.
If his satiety dropped to below 50, his stats temporarily fell.
‘There are good points to learning how to cook…’
In New World, the art of cooking was its own skill.
If the Cooking skill rose, it wasn’t just the decreased fullness and Stamina that could be restored, but Strength and Stamina could also be temporarily raised. Additionally, a realistic taste could be savored. That’s why everyone wanted to learn the Cooking skill.
Nevertheless, Ark still had no thoughts of learning to cook.
To learn a manufacturing skill, you have to meet the Master Artisan NPC, and the Cooking Master was in a faraway place. There would probably be an opportunity to learn it someday, so there was no reason invest the time to travel all the way there. Just learning the cooking skill didn’t mean he’d be able to immediately make luxurious dishes. He wouldn’t even be able to afford the ingredients to cook the luxury food.
There was also the inconvenience of having to carry the necessary ingredients. The bag Ark had gotten when he’d started was all he had, so he didn’t have much storage space. He couldn’t afford to carry cooking ingredients.
It was definitely a vital skill, but there was no need for him to go through hell just to learn it early game.
‘In any case, wheat bread is good enough for now. Since I have 30 wheat breads left, it should be enough for a round trip to the cave.’
Ark checked his map and began aggressively looking for the cave. He had already ventured deep into Harilal Mountain while hunting Wild Dogs and Wolves. The entrance to the cave was not far.
He followed the mountain slope, and after 30 minutes of walking, a copse of old oaks emerged. His eyes picked up the cleverly hidden cave entrance within the copse.
As soon as Ark put one foot into the cave, a sound effect similar to a sonorous shout rang out as the information window surfaced.
You have discovered a suspicious cave with an acrid smell and eerie chills flowing out of the deep and dark cave in the Harilal mountain range. You can feel that old secrets are being treasured here.
- You have discovered a dungeon no one has found until now.
Because you are a new explorer, if you register yourself in the Hall of Fame you will gain 500 experience and 50 fame.
Will you like to register?
“I refuse.” Ark replied without hesitation.
He had to hunt at least ten Wolves to get 500 experience. If he registered the cave in the Hall of Fame, a lot of people would find out about it.
For an undiscovered cave like this, there was no knowing what secrets or items might be waiting.
The greatest advantage of a newly discovered dungeon was that he could monopolise it. He hadn’t scouted it yet, and there was a high chance that a higher level user might beat him to the punch.
On the New World home page, there were simple-minded users who uploaded dungeon item lists and many others who laid in wait while biding their time.
‘I’d rather kill ten Wolves than to register this cave in the Hall of Fame.’
Once again, he was glad that he had done a lot of research.
If he’d come here without knowing anything like the first time, he would’ve thoughtlessly registered it in the Hall of Fame.
However, Ark was not the insipid person he used to be. It was common sense for him to be more cautious and alert than monsters, NPCs or even other users.
‘Now, what exactly is in here.’
Ark controlled his trembling excitement and stepped into the dungeon.
The smell of something rotting was overflowing with realism and stimulated his senses. It was so strong and terrible that he wondered if there really was a need to make even smells so real.
It happened when Ark had walked 100 meters into the cave.
Suddenly, his foot sank into something squishy. Startled, he jumped and felt the ground wriggle and climb up. In another moment, the image of the blackness swallowing him flashed into his mind and he lashed out.
“Wha-What’s all this? Don’t tell me they’re all Mice?”
Ark turned pale with fright. The things that were crawling up from the ground were all Mice. That was not all. He hadn’t noticed it until now, but the pitch black Mouse swarm was covering the entire cave.
Every time the Mice moved, it was like a wriggling wave over the whole cave.
The Mice emitted a terrible bloodthirst that made his spine go cold. The courage he had dedicated himself to raising was no use. Ark urgently flailed in the darkness. With one blow, a number of Mice went flying away and rolled onto the ground. That was thanks to the Mouse Hunter title he’d received, which raised his attack power and chance of critical hits.
‘Hmph, do you know how many Mice I’ve killed until now?’
Once he saw how big of an effect his one blow had, his fear dissipated.
No matter how many there were, in the end they were just Mice. With the attack bonus, even if he didn’t land a critical hit, there was no need for a second blow.
Without rest, Ark mowed down the Mice that were coming at him from all sides.
However, the number of Mice did not seem to decline.
‘Damn, if it goes on like this there’ll be no end. I have to run away.’
“The Spirit of the Cat!”
Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaa-!
Although he had learned it, he hadn’t actually thought that he’d be able to use it. Anyway, the Spirit of the Cat demonstrated an absolute effect on the Mice.
As soon as Ark used the skill, a splittingly searing cat’s cry pierced the air and the shape of a black cat appeared above his head. Upon seeing the cat’s flashing eyes, the Mice were paralyzed with fear.
In that space of time, Ark cut down the Mice in his path and escaped to the outside of the cave.
Although the paralyzing effect on the Mice wore off quickly, they didn’t chase him out of the cave.
“Phew, what a relief.”
Outside, Ark ate wheat bread and drank water to restore his stamina.
For there to be an innumerable swarm of Mice… It was truly a dizzying experience.
‘But I can’t just give up like this.’
Ark checked his quest window.
The quest hadn’t been updated yet. That meant he had to go in further. No, quest aside, he already had experience hunting tens and thousands of Mice. It would be stupid of him to give up on the quest just because the cave was infested with Mice.
‘I charged right in since it was my first time and didn’t know a thing, but I should be fine if I calmly work my self forward from the entrance.’
Ark entered the cave, cleared about one hundred Mice, and retreated. After doing this cycle three or four times, a sound effect rang out and a message window popped up.
You have learned a new skill. Sword Mastery (Beginner, Passive): You have taken the first step towards being a Swordsman.
From now on, whenever you wield a sword, all penalties received shall disappear.
You can now use your sword as an extension of your own hand. You have become more skilled with connecting your sword
skills to circumstances when you use them with other skills.
You will gain bonus attack power, based on your sword skill level.
*It has become possible to use the effect of ‘Swordsmanship’ as a combo, with Hand-to-Hand Combat. (Swordsmanship follows the levels of Sword Mastery and Hand-to-Hand Combat and rises accordingly.)
‘Sword Mastery has finally appeared.’
When he was hunting in the village, it was almost always with bare hands. It had been a waste to use the sword to kill the Mice and have to pay the repair fee. That’s why Sword Mastery, a skill that other users would have gained first, had only just appeared. However, it was fortunate that he had learned Sword Mastery later.
When he was first catching the Mice, Ark hadn’t known about the existence of a separate Sword Mastery skill. If he had known, he probably would have used his sword despite the repair fees.
But because he hadn’t known, he had continued to fight with his bare hands. Thanks to that, he had been able to learn Hand-to-Hand Combat. Although Hand-to-Hand Combat was a bare-handed skill, the bonuses applied slightly to every weapon he used.
The bonuses from Sword Mastery– if they were combined with the bonuses from Hand-to-Hand Combat, then in actuality his attack power was raised by 1.5 times. That was an effect he was able to feel right away.
‘Moving is very comfortable!’
Although he was wielding a sword there were no breaks in his movements
The attacks flowed like water!
Thanks to the effect of Sword Mastery, while he was wildly swinging his sword, he was also able to perform kicks. The skill that had been impossible until a little while ago had become possible. And without resting, he was able to ward off the attacking swarm of Mice.
‘So I see that if a related skill is learned, then new abilities form too!’
For the Hand-to-Hand Combat he had regarded as trivial to be so useful was something he hadn’t imagined.