As the workday was drawing to a close, I awoke from my nap at the office desk. Summer insisted on dragging me out for a stroll around the plaza, claiming it would help shake off the fatigue.
Celine was sipping her beverage, Aria was browsing the web, and Luna was flipping through a magazine. None of them wanted to brave the sunlight outside.
So, I found myself accompanying Summer on her walk. Surprisingly, her skin was fair and unblemished, not at all what you'd expect from someone who spends a lot of time outdoors.
We ended up wandering around all day without buying anything.
Another day passed without seeing Emma . As I clocked out, I felt a twinge of disappointment. But I reminded myself of what Diana had said - Emma was still leveling up, so it was unlikely she'd show up here.
Summer offered to help me level up, but I politely declined. I knew that in a party with her, I'd end up being the one carrying her. A low-level summoner without powerful creatures to call upon doesn't offer much in terms of damage output.
According to Celine, the studio wasn't fully operational yet, so everyone was still logging in from home. However, she mentioned that soon the company would purchase a house where the professional players could level up in peace. All the SnowMoon studio players would live together, fostering team unity and providing mutual support.
I found myself looking forward to the future of the studio.
But for now, I had to return home and log in alone.
I spawned at the edge of the tranquil forest. Checking my inventory, I saw I still had plenty of health and mana potions left from last night's grinding session. At level 18, the blue-eyed lizards here no longer held much appeal. I needed to push forward to find new training grounds. Many players were leveling up quickly, and I saw groups taking on the lizards. They looked at me strangely, seemingly surprised that a solo player could manage here.
Glancing at the level rankings, I had dropped from 83rd to 547th place in the US region. It seemed many players had given up on rest, aiming to reach max level within 24 hours!
The top female player in US, Breeze Embracing Moon, was offline but already at level 23.
At level 18, reaching 23 wouldn't be a problem for me. After all, I wielded the best weapon currently available in Ethereal Surge. If I couldn't climb to a high level with that advantage, it would be embarrassing.
So, I set off westward. The map showed that Twilight City, a nearby level 2 main city, lay in that direction. Twilight City was where players could advance their professions and pick up various quests from the adventurers' inn.
Seven players in US had already surpassed level 20. I figured they must be gathered in the level 2 main cities by now.
With this in mind, I left Shallow Swamp and traveled west for about ten minutes. Soon, a wind-swept ridge appeared before me. The map displayed: Wolf's Bane Ridge!
My heart skipped a beat. Could this be the legendary Wolf's Bane Ridge?
Two weeks ago, during Ethereal Surge's promotional campaign, Wolf's Bane Ridge was touted as a low-level player's paradise. But no one knew exactly what benefits it offered!
The mountain wind howled, carrying with it the low growls of fierce wolves.
In the distance, a dark figure prowled beneath a tree. It was a massive wolf with blood-red eyes that sent chills down my spine. Saliva dripped from its gaping maw, and a sword-like bone protruded from its spine, gleaming ominously.
[Hungry Blade Wolf] (Enhanced Monster)
Level: ???
Attack: ???
Defense: ???
HP: ???
...
A string of question marks. My level wasn't high enough to see the Blade Wolf's stats!
Without hesitation, I nocked an arrow and fired off an Ice Arrow. A blue flash enveloped the wolf's body in frost, dealing 300 points of damage. Clearly, this wolf's total HP far exceeded that of the blue-eyed lizards - 300 points barely scratched a tenth of its health bar.
I quickly switched to Armor-Piercing Arrow. With a thud, the arrow embedded itself in the wolf's skull, dealing 500 points of damage. It seemed the wolf's base defense wasn't too high, as the armor-piercing effect wasn't particularly noticeable.
So, I decided to try another active skill: Fire Arrow!
After consuming 5 MP, the arrowhead burst into flames. The fiery projectile struck the wolf's forehead!
"1105!"
A four-digit number!
I was shocked. Then I realized the Fire Arrow had ignited the wolf's fur, explaining the massive damage. It seemed Fire Arrow was the key to defeating these Blade Wolves!
I silently rejoiced at having learned all these skills. Without Fire Arrow, it would have taken at least two minutes to kill this wolf. Now, the fight would be much easier!
As I was celebrating, the Blade Wolf closed in. Its razor-sharp claws swept across my chest with a loud smack. I felt a searing pain as my HP plummeted by 248 points!
Alarmed, I quickly gulped down a health potion. But the wolf pressed on, sinking its teeth into my thigh for another 240 points of damage!
In mere seconds, my HP had been depleted!
In desperation, I fired off an Ice Arrow, significantly slowing the wolf's movement. Seizing this opportunity, I ran to maximum range and let loose a Fire Arrow!
"2240!"
Critical hit!
The powerful Fire Arrow completely countered the wolf's elemental weakness. One critical strike was enough to slay the beast!
With a final agonized howl, the massive Blade Wolf collapsed. Something clinked as it hit the ground, along with a shower of silver coins!
Heaven knows how high-level this Blade Wolf was. Two attacks nearly killed me instantly. Thankfully, my Golden Bow allowed me to fight fire with fire and take it down!
Approaching the corpse, I found a fiery red bracer and over a dozen silver coins. I collected everything and examined the bracer's properties:
[Crimson Flame Bracer] (Bronze tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 36
Agility: +5
Required Level: 25
(Unidentified)
...
I was dumbfounded. This Crimson Flame Bracer was a level 25 item! Logically, equipment dropped by normal monsters should be lower level than the monster itself. This meant the Blade Wolf I just killed must have been over level 25!
Killing a monster nearly 10 levels higher than me caused my experience bar to visibly jump!
I quickly stashed the Crimson Flame Bracer in my inventory and downed another health potion to recover. Now that I knew what to expect, I devised a strategy: alternate between Ice Arrow and Fire Arrow, keeping the Blade Wolf permanently slowed. This would make the fights safer and more efficient.
I lured another Blade Wolf and tested my new tactic. It worked like a charm! With just a small MP expenditure, I easily took down the wolf, which dropped over a dozen silver coins.
Elated, I collected the coins and looked up. To my surprise, I spotted a small tent in the outskirts of Wolf's Bane Ridge, with wisps of smoke rising from it.
My heart leaped: A quest!
I rushed over and found two NPC hunters gathered around a stove.
After initiating dialogue, one of the hunters said, "Wolf's Bane Ridge has been restless lately. Those vicious Blade Wolves have been attacking villagers. I heard three skilled hunters came here two weeks ago, but they've vanished without a trace. Rumor has it that a ruthless Blade Wolf King has appeared deep within the ridge. Young adventurer, do you have the courage to challenge the Blade Wolf King?"
"Ding!"
System Prompt: Do you want to accept this quest?
Quests were always welcome, especially when players on the forums were complaining about the scarcity of available tasks. I should consider myself lucky, so I quickly hit confirm!
"Ding!"
System Prompt: You have accepted the quest [Blade Wolf King]! (Current quest difficulty: 387)
Quest objective: Enter Wolf's Bane Ridge, slay Blade Wolves and collect 100 Sleek Wolf Pelts. Then, venture deep into the ridge, defeat the Blade Wolf King, and bring its head to Hunter Wyatt!
Reading the quest details, I was stunned. The difficulty rating was a staggering 387!
According to the rules, quest difficulty represents a percentage. A difficulty of 10 means there's a 10% chance of failure at the current level, while a difficulty of 100 means certain failure. Of course, this is just player interpretation. The higher the difficulty, the harder the quest is to complete.
This quest was essentially telling me that facing the Blade Wolf King would be a near-suicidal endeavor!
I glanced at the softly glowing Golden Bow in my hands. I knew it would be the wild card in this situation.
As realization dawned, I was overcome with excitement. Another opportunity had presented itself! Following the Slime King, I now had the chance to challenge another elite boss!