"This place's quite wide…"
After entering, Faye commented as she stared at the high ceiling and the thick support columns around.
"Based on the previous explorers, this spot has a strong monster of over level 40. The strength of it was enough to rout the 30 level 25 members of the exploration team."
"Did they end up wiped out?"
"No, they ran. It seems that the said monster cannot leave this place."
The two chatted as they carefully approached the large area.
"What's the monster called?"
"I believe that they called it Behemoth. Mostly due to its appearance it seems."
As they walked bravely up to the center, they stopped their steps.
"…."
"… No monsters…?"
As the two wondered, suddenly, a large shockwave together with a loud roar was heard. Looking at the source, a large monster's silhouette could be seen.
Due to insufficient light sources, they couldn't clearly see its appearance. However, its height could easily reach over 5 meters. Its body was wide too, about 3 meters. Also, it was bipedal.
"RRRRROOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!"
"T-There he is…"
Zeus spoke nervously with a snicker. In an instant, they kicked back into formation. Zeus immediately ran towards the monster and Faye maintained her distance enough for her healing spells to reach.
"… Mighty Hand!"
A support spell was cast on Zeus. It was a buff spell that increases base damage and critical hit rate by 20% and 5% respectively. Normally, they would use it after gauging the enemies' power however, this time, they do not have that much leisure.
"Quick Draw!"
As he reached the area near the monster, he unleashed one of his skills. Though, due to the height difference, all he could reach was slightly above the waist at most when he jump.
The Behemoth received Zeus's attack and cried in slight pain. Damages of -60 to -70 appeared on the game log. The wound was not that deep indicating that the attack wasn't that effective.
Then, the monster tried to smash him. Noticing its motion early, he evaded with ease. However, the smashed rocks scattered and fragments flew in all directions reducing Zeus's HP.
After evading, a bright white light rained down like a laser toward the monster. It then cried loudly in pain. On Faye's game log, damages of -200 to -500 appeared. Obviously, he was weaker against magic than physical attacks. Then, after noticing this, they immediately changed tactics.
"OVER HERE!!! FIGHT WITH ME, YOU WEAKLING!!!"
Battle Cry! Another skill unique to fighter professions. Unlike Beast's Roar, battle cry is activated by shouting provocative words for the enemy or encouraging words for allies. Its effect was mainly to catch the enemy's attention and draw in the monster's hate. In short, an aggro control skill.
The Behemoth ran to Zeus's location, the ground shook at its every step. Then, it suddenly swung its legs for a kick.
Zeus used this moment as a chance. As the large monster was swinging its legs, he tried to attack the other leg forcefully after dodging the kick lightly with a paper-thin margin. The Behemoth immediately lost balance and toppled.
While the Behemoth was down, Faye rained it with Holy Magic. Zeus too attacked the back of the head before it managed to recover. If the monster had a visible HP bar, you could see how a small chunk of its HP would disappear after every wave of attacks.
Even after receiving this much damage, it still remained alive. Its vitality was quite something to reckon with.
The two continued their hunt carefully. Since the magic attacks could dish large damage, hate mitigation was quite hard. One wrong step and their party would fall.
Even with Zeus's evasion skills, evading all of the attacks completely wasn't possible. The number of times that his health dropped to critical was too many to even count.
Their hunt went on. And after 15 minutes, a change started to occur.
"Haaaa…. Haaaa… Haaaaa…."
Stamina was running out!
Moving continuously at a fast pace would undoubtedly consume large amounts of stamina. Thanks to Zeus's high concentration, he was able to last for even 15 minutes. However, he was almost at his limits.
"Tsk… I didn't think it will be this hard…"
"… My mana is almost running out too…"
The two of them are almost out of juice. Any longer and it will definitely be dangerous.
Luckily, it was not just the two of them. The Behemoth too was showing signs of fatigue. Its body was riddled with many wounds and scratches. Its skin was slightly baked due to the Holy Power. Its movements too became much slower.
With the opposing sides both near their ends, the remaining battle will be a battle of attrition. Who falls first will lose!
However, that is if they follow conventional means.
"Faye! Switch! Hold it for 3 minutes at least!"
"Okay!"
The two of them switched positions!
Priests normally have low stamina and vitality. This is not their preference but rather the side effect of their class. However, that necessarily wasn't the case for all. Faye was one.
Faye had trained her vitality since the start. It was her focus next to her wisdom and intelligence.
After Zeus dodged another attack, Faye then hit the Behemoth with her staff.
Physical damage of the staff was almost none. However, it was enough to draw the hate of the monster.
The two of them recovered accordingly. Zeus for his stamina and health, and Faye for her mana.
Faye's character was a bit low on agility. However, that alone was not enough to cause her unable to evade. Experience from other games, muscle movements, and attack patterns. There are many variables that can be used to predict the next attack.
Staying on the back, Zeus was not simply resting. He was using his small crossbow to send bolts flying toward the monster. The small crossbow was one of the many ways for him to launch long-range attacks. The damage appearing on his game log was low, however, only showed about 10 to 15 damage for each bolt. Since he was not a ranger nor have any supporting skills, the attacks were quite flimsy and most of the time missed their target.
'You seem to be in quite a perilous situation… Do you wish aid?'
The spirit of Slyfer the dragon spoke inside Zeus's head.
"No… I don't have enough mana to let you materialize for long…"
Zeus replied while reloading his crossbow.
'This me have yet to show you my capabilities. This will be a good opportunity for you don't you think?'
Letting Slyfer join the battle can allow Zeus to see its limits.
However, one problem is that he doesn't have much mana left. At most, the summon will last for 4 seconds.
"Can you do something within 5 seconds?"
"Try summoning me and you'll see."
Having been provoked like that, Zeus couldn't help but consider summoning him. Then, he notified Faye that it is time to switch roles again.
"Let's go!"
He charged toward the behemoth again. At the same time, Faye backed away.
As soon as he arrived, he swung his sword together with his whole body weight. The hit caused the Behemoth to lose balance and it staggered a little. Not missing this chance, Zeus used a skill.
"Dragon Summon!!!"
At his shout, large gales of wind flew around the large dome of the cavern. At that instant, a small black dragon materialized in front of him.
"Now! Tremble in fear of my strength!!!"
As soon as he was summoned, he launched an attack!
Wind that's as sharp as razor flew towards the Behemoth. In a matter of moments, the monster was ridden with wounds grave enough to cause its death. Damages of over 1,000 appeared nonstop on Zeus' game log.
"Live in fear of the Legendary Dragon Slyfer! Hahaha!"
After he gave his short speech, he vanished into thin air.
"… That was effective… But not strong enough…"
Zeus immediately considered Slyfer's strength. In retrospect, he is about the same as a level 20 boss monster at present. It seems that leveling the sword will increase his strength too.
"Faye!"
Zeus gave the signal to Faye. As soon as he did, she blasted Behemoth with her strongest Holy Damage spell.
"… Spirits, gather in my hands and support me in my battle! Holy Ray!!"
As she finished chanting, a large amount of light burned Behemoth falling from over its head. It was about 10 times brighter than her normal attacks. When the light faded, the Behemoth was still standing. But, it was already half dead.
Then, to end the battle, Zeus swung his sword aimed at the monster's head. The Behemoth slowly fell down as if it got its strings cut off.
- - -
- You defeated a big threat inside Fatuna's 23rd Tunnel, Bigfoot!
- Due to the high difference in level, you earned 700,000 experience. Experience will be shared with party members accordingly.
- You picked up the boss class item Bigfoot's Leather x80.
- You picked up the boss class item Golden Thread x120.
- You picked up the boss class item Noble's Blood x90.
- You picked up the boss class item Cursed Nails x80.
- You picked up the rare item Gurder's Claws +20. Luck has increased by 1.
- You picked up the rare item Fabello's Helm +20. Luck has increased by 1.
- You picked up the rare item Serville's Armor +20. Luck has increased by 1.
- You picked up the rare item Helen's Crown +20. Luck has increased by 1.
- A new stat has been added, Fame, with a point of 40.
- Through defeating a boss monster way above your level, all stats increased by 10.
- By fighting courageously, Courage increased by an additional 8.
- - -
Both of them rejoiced at the mountain of benefits! For Faye, a bonus was added for dealing the most damage against the monster.
- - -
- You fought at the front lines of a large hunt! Courage and Honor increased by 10.
- Due to fighting out of the norm, you have gained the skills to be known as a Battle Priest. Would you like to change your class?
- - -
"Yes." Faye, without hesitation, clicked on the change class notification. A player under level 10 managed to change class! If others heard this, they wouldn't believe their ears.
- - -
- Class changed to Battle Priest!
- A new stat has been added, Fighting Spirit, with a point of 20.
- A new stat has been added, Fame, with a point of 40.
- - -
"Did you get anything useful?"
Zeus immediately confirmed their loot. As the ones he earned were all quite excellent, he was expecting Faye to have some too.
"Hmmm… I picked up Serville's Bastard Sword +20 and Fatuna Dungeon's Complete Map."
"The map will be useful… How about the sword?"
"Level requirement is 50 and above… The attack is over 200. Looks good."
"I also picked items over level 50… Looks like we cannot do anything but sell them…"
And so, they safely finished hunting inside the Fatuna's Dungeon. Their way back felt much easier as it was just a straight path. After leaving, they went hunting around the forest before finally moving towards the town once again to sell their loot.
- - -
It was now almost time for the two to meet Marielle.
They spent most of their time hunting and rested once night fell. After some time, they continued hunting. Time passed freely and it was now already past 6 PM IRL.
The two waited at the gates. It was the place they had agreed to before.
Moments later, a girl ran in their direction.
It was Marielle. However, her usual large bag was not with her.
"S-Sorry to make you wait!"
"What happened to your bag?"
Faye immediately asked.
"I left it at the inn I'm staying at."
"Is that so… Then, as promised, we'll accompany you to the Magic Council."
"Really, thank you very much!"
"…"
The two girls walked energetically while Zeus dragged his feet as he followed behind the two.
Minutes passed and they reached the council. Going up to the 4th floor took less time than before.
"Good Evening. We came here to shop."
"Yes, may we help you?"
"We're looking for Magic Weapons. Living Weapons to be exact."
"If that's the case then please follow me."
The two girls were immediately led to the place where the Living Weapons are stored. Zeus decided to look around instead of following the two.
The walls were still covered with extremely expensive-looking items. Some were covered in gold. Some were even littered with jewels. A luxury item that can be identified in one glance.
"… With my money can I afford the prices?"
He then checked his money as he looked at his Adventurer's Card.
Name: Zeus
Level: 5
Experience: 9,957,014/1,600
Rank: 1,204,554,215th
Class: Adventurer
Title: Lightning Fast Hunter
Health: 3,081
Mana: 787
Attack: 155
Defense: 249
Strength: 198
Agility: 231
Wisdom: 150
Intelligence: 162
Vitality: 210
Endurance: 221
Concentration: 140
Luck: 122
Evasion: 190
Courage: 97
Persuasion: 80
Fame: 98
Money: 8,844,091D
Skills:
- Evasion (Lv. 8)
- Warrior's Heart (Lv. 9)
- Beast's Roar (Lv. 4)
- Hard Skin (Lv. 2)
- Battle Cry (Lv. 3)
- Unbreakable Will (Lv. 3)
- Quick Draw (Lv. 4)
- Dragon Summon
Status:
Newbie
- You will receive bonus 2x experience for the first 180 hours.
- Commodities will be priced half for you.
- Remaining: 119 hours.
- - -
A Cheat level improvement!
Due to knowing several decisive pieces of information beforehand, he managed to hunt more efficiently and earn large income through selling Rare Items.
But mainly, it was due to his reckless hunts and his unrelenting hunting speed.
However, even though he was already comparable to a level 40 player, he was not yet satisfied.
"… With this… No… It's still not enough…"
He was considering buying some accessories to replace his current equipment. However, considering the cost and benefits, it will leave him at a loss.
That is because he cannot equip high-level equipment yet. All he can equip are general items where no level or low levels are required. These sorts of items, especially the good ones, are extremely expensive.
"Better leave it for later…"
He then continued looking at the merchandise as he waited for the two.
Then, he noticed something.
"What is this item?"
He asked the sales lady curiously. She then answered him with a smile.
"This, sir, is a magic bracelet. It allows you to access your items that are stored far away."
The said item looks like an orb no matter how you look at it. There's no hole whatsoever to tell that it is a bracelet. It has a combination of intricate black and red patterns that intertwine with each other. A faint gold light was visible, surging from within.
"… It looks useful… What is the name of this bracelet?"
"It's Ciello's Golden Bracelet."
"Gold? But it's black…"
"That's just the casing. Inside is a pure gold bracelet that is riddled with engravings of a forgotten language."
"Gold… Then, the price is…"
"About 100,000,000 Darks sir. It was after we offered a 20% discount as the original price is 125M."
Zeus almost choked as he heard the price. The magic council really does offer insanely expensive items as the rumor says.
The fact being the Living Weapons are their cheapest merchandise is something that he knew ahead of time. This is due to the said items requiring to stay at low levels before the sale.
However, this price was something that he cannot afford as of now.
'Someday, no, in the near future, I will acquire this bracelet.'
Swearing in his heart, he continued looking at the display. Moments later, the two girls finally came back.
Marielle was now holding a bow. It has a somewhat wooden vibe as it was brown and green in color, but after closer inspection, it was made of metal up to the string.
"Are you done?"
"Yes. It seems that this weapon fits her perfectly. Not only that, but the spirit was sooooo cute too!"
"I-It possesses a spirit of a forest elf. The special effect is that it adds additional attributes to attacks."
"… Is that so? Then, let's go."
Zeus indifferently ended the conversation. Faye's mood was too good to be angry at him so she let it slide.