The commotion was caused by Dahlan arguing with someone. Kuti and I decided not to get involved, as it could be troublesome if we got caught up in the conflict. Dahlan repeatedly punched a person wearing a robe with a fox symbol.
"How dare you come here, deliver a letter, and threaten the peace of this town. Go home!" said Dahlan after he was satisfied with hitting what seemed to be a messenger.
"Just wait and see! Who will win! Lord Kromosemito will surely win!" the messenger left the crowd.
"What's going on here?" Grandmaster Tiana emerged from inside the guild. "What kind of commotion is this? Is there a fight?"
"No, someone suddenly came here and read this invasion threat letter," Dahlan approached the muscular and strong brown-haired woman. He handed her the letter from the messenger.
Grandmaster Tiana read it and tore the letter apart. "This is just a bluff. This town will remain under the Order of the Moon Knights. Don't worry, we can handle them."
Avoiding the commotion, Kuti and I entered the guild building. Kuti seemed excited because this building was very similar to the one in our game. She quickly went to the guild bulletin board and took several tasks and requests for help. After registering us both as a duo party, we set off to complete them.
"I took 10 tasks! Just like we usually do!" Kuti showed the list on her phone and shared it with me.
"Huh, Kuti? Who is that beside you?" Dahlan suddenly interrupted.
"Thomas," Kuti replied.
"Huh? Really? You look different," Dahlan asked.
"I-I just got a haircut," I answered and smiled. "W-we're going to complete the daily missions. Do you want to join our party?"
"No. I'm going to mine gold first. Rosa already went to the academy to level up and train her magic attacks," Dahlan replied. "Maybe tomorrow we can party as a group of four again."
"Okay, then. See you!" Kuti said, and we both left the guild and headed to the western part of the town. Our first task was to help eliminate the slime attacks in the villagers' vineyard. Kuti skillfully shot them accurately with her bow, while I protected her from the slimes' attacks.
After defeating all 200 slimes, we reported to the villager who requested help. The villager seemed happy to see that we had eliminated all the slimes that were disturbing his vineyard.
"Kuti, look at the time. It's 12 o'clock now, if I'm not mistaken. A mini boss will appear in the north. We need to get there quickly because I need the materials it drops. I need three of its horns, four of its skins, and the crystal it drops," I told Kuti.
"Okay! Awesome, my level has increased significantly. From level 20 to 25," Kuti checked her card. Then she looked at me, "You too. Let's get there quickly."
We both ran to the northern part of the town. Then we decided to rest for a bit behind a large rock. A herd of five-horned rhinos and their leader, a six-horned large rhino, appeared.
"K-Kuti, please help!" I was excited and blocked the herd. If we didn't block them, they could enter the town and cause a city-wide event. I used my enemy-attracting skill to make them attack me.
Kuti took a safe position and prepared her arrows. The herd of rhinos charged at me, and I managed to reflect 45% of their attack thanks to my special ability.
I struck them with my club, causing them to freeze. Kuti shot them precisely in their eyes and then in their necks. One rhino was defeated and dropped materials. We repeated this strategy until their leader appeared. I had to be careful dealing with the leader.
Failing to block its charge even once could send me flying and risk damaging my equipment. If Dahlan and Rosa were here, I could ask them to distract and slow down the giant rhino so I could jump and hit its horn to make it stop moving and fall to the ground.
When it fell to the ground, Kuti, Rosa, and Dahlan could attack it for maximum damage. Otherwise, their attacks would be reduced by 50% due to the protection magic on its horn. To attack it, a tank with high CC skills was needed. That's why I bought a club instead of a sword.
"A-aim for its legs, Kuti!" I asked Kuti. "Don't miss! If you miss, change positions immediately!"
Kuti nodded because if she answered with her voice, her location would be revealed, and she could be attacked since the rhino would target someone with low protection.
Kuti's arrow missed! I quickly dodged its charging path, and Kuti immediately changed positions and disappeared. Its charge hit nothing, but now it maneuvered at high speed toward me. This was the danger of the herd leader; it could maneuver unlike regular rhinos.
This time, Kuti's arrow hit its left leg. The giant rhino slowed down, and I saw an opportunity to jump onto its head. I prepared myself to jump at the right moment.
I hit its horn with my club. The rhino roared in pain and stopped moving. I held on tightly to avoid being thrown off. Now the rhino was down, and Kuti quickly aimed for its eyes and neck. I hit its horns before it could get back up. We repeated this process 15 times until the rhino was defeated.
It dropped many materials and items I needed. I collected them and shared them with Kuti. After that, we continued to complete the daily tasks Kuti had taken. By the evening, we had completed all the tasks and returned to report to the guild.
After receiving our rewards from the guild, we headed to the blacksmith shop. There, I asked the blacksmith for permission to use his tools. With my skills, I crafted my trusty shield and club from the game for myself. With the leftover materials, I made Kuti her favorite crossbow.
The old blacksmith was impressed. "Wow, you're really good at making such great items. You must have worked hard to gather all the materials."
"Yes, we faced giant rhinos, ruin guardians, and hundreds of slimes," Kuti replied. "Thank you, Thomas! I finally have my favorite weapon again. Uncle, can you make an obsidian bow by tomorrow?"
"If you want it by tomorrow, it will be expensive. I'll have to work overtime, and there's an extra charge for that," the blacksmith replied, twirling his long mustache.
"I'll pay. I'll pay 5% upfront. I'll pay the rest when it's ready," Kuti said.
Ah, right, I forgot in our old party. Kuti was a P2W (pay-to-win) player; her family was very wealthy. I wasn't surprised that she could order such expensive items. Thanks to her, our party could level up quickly too.
The blacksmith was very happy and immediately closed his shop to process the special order. Kuti smiled and glanced at me, "Want to see? I didn't expect this, look."
She showed me her adventurer's card. The amount of money she had was unlimited. "How is that possible, Kuti?"
"I don't know. Just keep it to yourself, darling," Kuti kissed my cheek. "Time to go home. Today I'll sleep in my room. See you tomorrow! I'm so happy my level reached 50 today."
"I wonder what the level cap is? In the game, it's 99. Maybe since we're the main characters, it can go beyond that," Kuti pondered as she left for home. I should hurry home too. I bought some fish for dinner. When I got home, I found Kuti already there.
"Weren't you going to sleep at your place?" I asked.
"Yes. But I still come here to eat. It's better to eat together, right?" Kuti replied.
Mom and dad had just come home too. I showed them the bag of fish. Mom immediately started preparing to cook with Kuti's help. Kuti whispered something to mom, and she smiled and looked at me.
Dad came over and patted my shoulder. "I heard you fought against the giant rhino leader and won? That's impressive, considering you're using tanker equipment."
"It was a team effort, dad," I replied and sat down. "You should shower first."
Dad hurried to shower, and I sat at the dining table, waiting for my turn to shower. My phone vibrated, and I opened it. There was a private message from 999. "Do you want to get stronger? I can make you stronger and grant you anything you want."
"Can I request to max out all my stats? But please blur them if any other adventurers want to see. And remove the restrictions on using items or equipment for me," I replied.
"I can grant that. But on one condition," 999 replied.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Be my subordinate. Kuti has accepted my offer. As a bonus, if you agree, I will ensure you and Kuti stay together," he answered.
"Kuti accepted? What did she ask for?" I asked.
"That's a secret. But one of her wishes was to keep you by her side," 999 replied.
"I accept," I replied.
"Do you prefer this world or the previous one?" 999 asked again.
"This one," I answered.
"Do you want to go back?" 999 asked.
"No," I answered.
"Okay! Your wish is granted! Stay with Kuti, and you both will work under me. Every morning there will be special tasks for you," 999 said.
"Did Dahlan and Rosa receive this message too?" I asked.
He didn't reply. I put my phone away and went for my shower. After showering, it was Kuti's turn, and I helped mom with cooking and setting the table. Once mom finished showering, we all ate together.
"To celebrate the new couple!" mom said, glancing at us.
Dad's eyes widened in disbelief. "R-really! You two? You two are dating?"
I looked at Kuti, who was now blushing. "Y-yes, dad. I'm dating Kuti."
"Just get married already! Finally, dear! I thought there was something wrong with our son. Turns out he's normal!" dad said to mom.
"I'm perfectly normal, dad!" I replied. We continued our dinner with joy and laughter.