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The armor, which had been buffeted by the cold wind all night, had become extraordinarily frigid.
Despite wearing an inner shirt, the chief guard could still feel the armor sapping his body heat.
"Aqiu~~~"
The chief guard sneezed forcefully. After staying awake all night without spotting the person he was waiting for, an inexplicable irritability began to bubble within him.
A cloud of frustration loomed over his heart, yet he had no means to express it. This sensation left him feeling particularly aggrieved.
"Open the door!!!"
Suddenly, a male voice pierced the morning stillness, shattering the tranquility with its urgency.
"Damn it! Which fool is yelling? Don't they know it's not time to open the city gate yet?"
The chief guard, eager for an outlet for his pent-up anger, lashed out at the source of the disturbance, his voice full of rage from a night of restlessness.
"Yelling so loudly at the break of dawn, I ought to throw you into the dungeon for disturbing the peace!"
The chief guard continued to bark as he marched towards the city gate.
However, when he spotted a group of figures standing at the city gates, he froze in surprise.
This group consisted of spear hero Motoyasu, bow hero Itsuki , sword hero Ren, and the adventurers who accompanied them.
As if that wasn't surprising enough, Myne, the princess of this kingdom, was among them. How could he not recognize her?
Myne, who had just been humiliated by Jason the day before, shared a mood not unlike that of an angry storm cloud. Hearing the crude utterances of the chief guard, her face turned frosty, her eyes filled with a murderous glare that seemed ready to blast the guard where he stood.
Under Myne's fierce stare, the chief guard began to sweat profusely. Kneeling on the ground, he stammered, "I'm sorry! I didn't know it was all brave warriors! I truly did not mean to offend you, esteemed heroes!"
Motoyasu and the others misinterpreted the chief guard's fear as respect for their heroic status. Although their expressions were mostly neutral, Motoyasu held his chin slightly higher, as if proudly declaring his nobility.
"Alright, hurry up and open the city gate. Before the next wave of beasts arrives, we need to bolster our strength quickly. We cannot afford any delays!" Ren commanded coldly.
"Y-yes, yes! I'll open the city gate right away!"
The chief guard quickly scrambled to his feet and opened the gates for them.
The trio of brave warriors strode forward, followed by their band of adventurers, making their way onto the grassland outside the city.
...
Meanwhile, Jason lay sprawled lazily on the grassland, a multitude of balloon monsters nipping at his body.
Strangely, the bites from the balloon monsters elicited no pain; it seemed that their sharp teeth couldn't penetrate his defenses at all, even providing a soothing sensation akin to a gentle massage.
Indeed, Jason had spent the entire night battling these balloon monsters on the grasslands.
He embodied the very spirit of a hardcore gamer, reminiscent of the days when he would tirelessly grind for levels without rest.
Back then, he could stay awake for three days and nights purely to level up in online games.
Of course, fighting real monsters in the wild consumed far more energy than mindlessly clicking away in front of a computer screen.
Yet, thanks to the Garp template, Jason felt no fatigue, instead simply lying on the grass to unwind after a rather monotonous evening of combat.
Little did he know that the chief guard was about to make trouble for him. If he had been aware, he would surely have regretted delaying his return and losing the opportunity to grow stronger.
"Just a bit more, and I can reach level 5. Leveling up in this world sure is tough. I hope the returns are worth it."
Jason opened his eyes, casually plucking one of the balloon monsters from his body and crushing it without a second thought.
Along with the notification of EXP +1 appearing in his vision, the words 'level up' illuminated his display.
"Level 5—what's changed in my attributes?"
Muttering to himself, Jason accessed his status panel.
[Jason]: Human.
[LV]: Level 1 → Level 5
[HP]: 1350→1400
[SP]: 300→325
[Strength]: 65→65 (ordinary person 5)
[Agility]: 53→57 (+3)
[Defense]: 103→115 (+5)
[Spirit]: 30→34 (+1)
"Looks like I've gained a few points after reaching level 5, but why does my strength remain unchanged?"
Gazing at his attributes with a frown, Jason felt a hint of disappointment.
In truth, if it weren't for the Garp template bonus, the increase in his attributes would have seemed rather impressive.
It was simply unimaginable for Jason, who feasted on lobster and geoduck every day, to catch sight of wild vegetables.
Just as he was about to dismiss his status panel, he suddenly noticed that the display in his vision had gone haywire, as if some sort of virus had infiltrated the computer interface.
In that moment, he felt an unnatural force surge within him, as his attributes flickered erratically.
"Ding dong! The Garp template has reached 8% completion!"
A notification echoed in his mind, and his status bar stabilized, freezing the attributes in place.
[Jason]: Human.
[LV]: Level 5
[HP]: 1500
[Strength]: 70 (ordinary person 5)
[Defense]: 130 (+5)
[Spirit]: 39 (+1)
The increase in the Garp template's completion stood at a mere 1%, yet the boost to his attributes had skyrocketed compared to the previous level.
What thrilled Jason the most was the revelation that leveling up could actually contribute to the completion of the Garp template.
This meant that the benefits he reaped from gaining experience had multiplied manifold.
It also implied a path to faster growth in power.
Just as Jason was savoring his excitement, he heard voices nearby.
"Master Motoyasu, here are some creatures referred to as Balloon Monsters. They look like balloons and, although weak, exhibit a great deal of aggression. It would be ideal for you to test your skills against them!"
"Balloon Monsters, huh? They don't sound too formidable. Where are they?"
Motoyasu, eager to wash away the humiliation of being defeated by Jason the previous day, raised his holy spear, ready for action.
However, as he looked around, the grassland seemed unremarkable—no signs of any strange movements, only the whispering sound of the wind brushing through the grass.
"This is odd. There are usually a lot of Balloon Monsters around here. Why can't I see even one today?"
The adventurer accompanying him expressed confusion over the serene landscape.
"Could they be migrating?" Kitamura Motoyasu proposed.
"Impossible. Regardless of the type of monster, they maintain a strong sense of territory and will not vacate that area without a compelling reason," the adventurer replied, shaking his head and dismissing Motoyasu's theory.
"Motoyasu, have you encountered a monster called Balloon Monster?"
A voice rang out nearby, catching Motoyasu's attention.
"It seems I've been mistaken; there's nothing here, not even an insect!"
Turning to see Ren leading a group of adventurers toward him, Motoyasu felt a mix of anticipation and curiosity.
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