Like fireworks, multiple messages boomed in the sky, but Ren no longer cared about them.
The others could compete with first blood for simple quests for all he cares. He knew the rewards of those first blood weren't great at this point in time. The only noteworthy of obtaining first blood now were the rare quests, defeating bosses, and clearing dungeons.
With that in mind, Ren took his time and enjoyed the game for once. Unlike in the past, where there was a sense of urgency in everything he did that he no longer enjoyed playing the game.
While the others were busy finishing quests in the newbie villages here and there and grinding for EXP like their life depended on it, Ren was busy picking flowers and herbs in the meadows.
Just across Euclid forest and beside the dirt road going to Euclid village was a vast expanse of tall grass and flowers with a pool of water at the center, coming from a reservoir down below.
Ren was there, foraging what he could. Though he could only forage a spot once a day before the items respawn the next day.
[ACQUIRED:
❶ Blue Grass x7
❷ Earth x4
❸ Rock x10
❹ Twig x3
❺ Fresh Water x5]
They were mediocre items at best because Ren foraged using his hands. Later, there would be tools available in the market to up his forage items.
Like if he had an axe, he could get lumber. And depending on the quality of his tool, he could get rare materials.
The quality of foraging tools depended on their color. Like for example, a bronze pickaxe would get him rocks. A silver pickaxe would get him basic ores. A gold pickaxe would mine him precious stones.
But a platinum pickaxe . . . it would let him acquire rare ores and stones.
As a soon to be Alchemist who relied on his materials to craft, Ren needed those tools.
When Ren had already foraged every spot there was to foraged, he snatched the onigiri from his inventory and placed it near the pool of water at the center of a small dirt area.
It didn't take a minute, and a tiny little piglet with a streak of black and white lining its brown furs appeared.
[Pelka
Information:
❶ Appeared one time in Euclid Meadows
❷ If LCK +100, 70% chance of appearance
❸ If any cooked dishes are placed near the pool of water, 40% chance of appearance]
Ren crossed his hands and grinned in delight. His eyes were glinting evilly at those little plump pigs.
These little piglets were called [Pelka], and their meat was the most delicious and sought after in COVENANT. The taste of its meat, when cooked by a [Grandmaster Chef], was so delicious and out of this realm that even the conservative people who were against the game ate their words and entered COVENANT so that they could taste it once in their life.
It was also why the nouveau rich and royalty entered the game so that they could eat Pelka Meat every day. And COVENANT became a tourist destination for those who didn't want to play and only wanted to sightsee and experience the awesome scenery and delicious food.
A piece of the Pelka Meat could fetch from 10,000 gil to 100,000 gil when auctioned right.
And if cooked and served as food by a [Grandmaster Chef], its price doubled.
But the rich didn't care. They earned that amount of money every few hours even without working.
However, in return for the expensive meat and out-of-this-world taste, Pelkas were rare.
Very rare!
They required specific ATP and items to trigger in each location. And once activated, they would no longer appear again.
They could only be triggered once, and each location had its own requirements. In Euclid meadow, the condition was above +100 LCK and any kind of food.
It was the reason why Ren allocated all his ATP to LCK. He couldn't afford to miss it, so he poured all his acquired EXP to LCK just in case.
When all the Pelkas in that area appeared and munched on Ren's food, the latter threw the rock he acquired at them.
[Used Rock x1
Number of Rock Left: 9]
The Pelkas were startled, and they stopped munching. They looked at Ren with angry eyes before all of them charged at him with their snout ramming his leg.
-1
-1
-1
-1
Ren's HP decreased by 1 each time a Pelka hit him with its snout.
Ren stifled a laugh.
There was also another reason why Ren wanted to trigger these rare Pelkas.
It was because . . .
Ren poked his long staff over the Pelka's head. But since his STR was only 2, the amount of damage he made on the little piglet was only -1.
But it was enough to kill the piglet.
[ACQUIRED:
❶ Pelka Meat x10
❷ 1,000 EXP]
Pelka's were actually beasts that offered a huge and fixed amount of EXP no matter how high your ATP had become.
It was indeed the best grinding spot!
It was the reason why many players in the past went 'gaga' in search of them.
However, they were quite fast. But of course, their level of AGI was still based on the player's ATP. And the moment one of them was killed, the others would run away immediately.
Ren was prepared, though. He waited and gathered every Pelka and let them attack him so all of them would get close to him since he wasn't confident with his AGI.
Needless to say, with just a thwack of his long staff and a throw of a stone to those who were fleeing, he managed to kill all the Pelka and raked a whopping 10,000 EXP and [Pelka Meat x144].
The amount of [Pelka Meat] you could acquire depended on your LCK, and that was another reason why Ren only increased his LCK.
Another thing to note about this elusive piglet was that you couldn't use magic-related attacks on them. If you did, you wouldn't be able to acquire its meat. That was why Ren opted to buy a longer staff that he could equip so it would be easier to attack them from a long range position.
Satisfied, Ren sighed in bliss.
It was really a good time to be alive!
He could only view others eating the meat in the past since it was so expensive.
But now . . . he actually had x144 of them!
With these he didn't have to worry about his student loan anymore!
Ren immediately allocated half of his 10,000 EXP to his DEF and INT in preparation for his first Boss fight later.
But first . . .
Ren roasted a [Pelka Meat] using his [Fire] spell and munched that tender flesh in one go.
[ ACQUIRED:
❶ Roasted Pelka Meat x1 ]
Ren gasped when fireworks of flavors exploded in his mouth. The meat was so soft, melting on his tongue and with it came different flavors that were more delicious than anything he had tasted in his entire life.
[ All ATP increased +1 ]
If the meat was already this delicious at his level of cooking, then what's more if a [Grandmaster Chef] cooked it?
No wonder the rich and royalties all came to the game just to eat it.
Ren found it hilarious in the past, but now that he got to taste the meat for the first time in his life, he finally understood the hype.
It was like a strong addicting drug that Ren was having a hard time resisting to take another bite from his inventory.
He was starting to regret that he even ate one.
No wonder everyone who ate it in the past said that they couldn't stop eating it once they tasted it. There were even instances where many people went bankrupt because of the valuable meat.
It felt like a voice inside Ren's head was constantly whispering for him to taste another bite.
It was like a cursed item. Ren mused, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Thinking about his parents and buying them a mansion on the best spot in Zone A's exclusive neighborhood helped him resist the powerful calling inside his head.
Ren lay on the grass and closed his eyes. Maybe if he slept, he would forget about the taste?
. . . Maybe.