Chapter 30 : Chapter 30

Chapter 30: How a Mercenary Rests (2)

The party decided to rest for a week.

It was the result of calculating how long they could play and eat with the assets they each had.

“Master, this way.”

“Got it.”

Artier followed Collie’s call.

The sound of crunching autumn leaves echoed in the quiet forest.

“Are there really herbs in this direction?”

“That’s right. My nose does not lie, you see.”

Collie, who had turned back into a dog at some point, was moving with his nose practically buried in the ground.

“Moonshadow Grass is an herb that stays buried in the ground during the day. It is impossible to see with the naked eye.”

“I know that too. I just don’t know why there’s a request to dig it up during the day.”

“Master, you too. You are asking even though you know, are you not?”

Collie tapped a spot with his front paw.

Artier sighed and took out a small shovel from his inventory.

“I know. Moonshadow Grass dug up during the day has better efficacy.”

“That is correct. It is essential for making efficient potions.”

Artier’s hand skillfully scooped up the surrounding soil.

At first, he couldn’t do this and ended up ruining the herbs he had managed to find.

The fortunate thing was that the forest around Pons was so abundant with herbs that it was overflowing.

“But master, how long are you going to take on this request? It has already been three days since we started looking for herbs.”

“Hmm…”

Artier threw the dug-up herb into his inventory.

In truth, these miscellaneous requests were errands that low-grade mercenaries would do.

The reward money was what it was, but the experience points given by the system were also a mere pittance.

“There is one thing I’m looking for…”

“What is it?”

“No, it’s just wishful thinking. And there’s nothing else to do, is there? Do you want to hunt wild animals?”

“Not particularly, but… I am bored! I cannot even use any decent magic.”

Collie lay down on the ground and looked up at him, only moving his eyes.

“It has not been long since I came out into this world again. I want to experience and feel more things.”

“Come to think of it, that must be true.”

Collie’s proper life as a Spirit Creature began after he escaped the ruins.

Even including the Dorman defense battle, less than a month had passed.

‘Maybe Collie, like me, doesn’t know this world well either.’

Artier leaned against a nearby tree and got lost in thought.

Now that Collie had said this much, it seemed he couldn’t just spend the entire week doing menial tasks.

‘But there don’t seem to be any significant requests around here, nor are there any ruins or dungeons.’

It was a place that was truly good for defining the word peace.

So it seemed difficult to gain any combat-related experience.

“…Hmm, my head isn’t working well.”

“Is it because you are hungry? It is already lunchtime.”

“Is that so. Let’s eat for a bit.”

Sitting on a nearby rock with Collie, who had returned to his boy form, Artier took out a faintly warm sandwich and stew from his inventory.

“Ooh, it is still warm. How did you do that?”

“I just put it in my inventory.”

Thanks to the inventory that all humans in this world could use, the concept of preserved food was not very developed in this world.

Whatever food was put in, its warmth and texture were preserved as they were, so there was no need to dry it or oversalt it.

“But it is amazing to take out something in a bowl just as it is. It seems the master keeps his inventory extremely neat.”

“Huh? Doesn’t everyone do this much?”

“Have you not seen the barbarian’s inventory? Because she just throws things in randomly, I do not think she herself knows what is in her inventory.”

Artier chuckled.

She certainly seemed to be far from organized.

‘For me, the system organizes it for me.’

Artier silently wiped away his cold sweat as he looked at the button next to the system window.

These days, all games have an auto-sort item system, don’t they? Right?

“By the way, master, how large is your inventory capacity?”

“Me? Hmm…”

Artier checked the capacity written in the system window.

“About 150kg?”

“What?!”

Checking beside him, Collie was in a state where he had hastily caught a sandwich he had almost dropped with Telekinesis.

“What’s wrong?”

“For a swordsman’s inventory to be able to hold 150kg, that is impossible, is it not?”

“Is it because it’s too little?”

“The opposite! It is too much!”

Artier showed a bewildered expression. This capacity was the standard public inventory level that all NPCs had since the game days.

“Uh…”

“The inventory’s capacity increases in proportion to the user’s mana control ability. That is why a mage’s inventory is usually larger than a warrior’s. But the master’s inventory capacity is even larger than mine…”

“How big is your inventory?”

“It is about 70kg right now. I believe Sir Gerard’s is about 50kg.”

Hearing Collie’s words, Artier could also realize that something was wrong.

Even Collie, a pure mage, had an inventory less than half the size of Artier’s, so for him, who had barely invested any stats in Intelligence, to have an inventory of that capacity, Collie couldn't help but be surprised.

“The master uses a sword, so you might not know, but the master has an incredible talent for magic. Even more than Sir Gerard.”

“Really…?”

“It is not a level to be spoken of so lightly.”

Poke!

Simultaneously with his words, Collie’s finger was touching Artier’s nose.

“Mana control ability is close to an innate talent. In my view, the master’s talent is more outstanding than any human in the last 200 years.”

“How do you know 200 years of history…?”

When Artier stared at him, Collie growled like he did in his dog form and shouted.

“That is not what is important! Even if I am young, I have a firm grasp of at least 200 years of actual human history! I heard it all from my senior Spirit Creatures!”

“Alright. But I have no intention of learning magic right now.”

“Eh? Why is that?”

Magic was certainly convenient.

As long as you aimed well from a distance, there was no need to worry about dodging, and the destructive power was respectable.

Even the official website of <Cross Destiny> recommended magic as a beginner-friendly skill.

But the reason Artier didn’t make magic his main focus was simple.

“Because I’m better with a sword.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“A long time ago, someone ambushed me during a request.”

<Cross Destiny> had an ambush system.

It was part of the multiplayer function, where one could transfer their own character into another person’s ongoing game data.

The problem was that the ambush function allowed entry into another person’s game without their consent, and the invading character could kill the owner character of that game.

“At that time, I was an apprentice mage, and the opponent was also a mage.”

“You have walked the path of magic before?”

“Well… I think so. When I was young, though.”

Artier said, deliberately looking away.

Since there was no way to explain his multiple playthroughs, he had no choice but to be vague.

“Until then, I had never lost even when ambushed. Whether they came with swords, spears, or bows, whatever weapons they held, I always drove them away. This time will be the same, no matter how many come, I’ll win…. I think that was my mindset.”

Taehoon was one of the people who had played <Cross Destiny> for an exceptionally long time.

Naturally, he knew most of the system loopholes, techniques, and combinations that even beginners or those who had enjoyed the game to some extent did not know.

It wasn't strange for unsuspecting ambushers to come in and get a good beating before returning.

“But I felt it for the first time.”

“Felt what?”

“The realm of talent… should I say.”

“Don’t tell me you lost?”

“That’s right. I lost, decisively.”

A single magic arrow that exploited a mere opening.

On the surface, it might have seemed like Taehoon would have won if not for that one mistake.

But a player of Taehoon’s caliber could feel it clearly.

That small mistake and even his movements had all been induced by the opponent from the beginning.

“Magic is usually a battle where you look two moves ahead, right? I couldn’t do that kind of thing.”

“Just because that person defeated you does not mean the master is bad at magic.”

“Uh, that’s true, but I think I’m better with a sword, you know?”

“What kind of nonsensical talk is that again. Is it because you have never lost with a sword?”

“Yeah.”

“…What?”

A subtle confidence appeared in Artier’s smile.

It could have been arrogant pride, but at least there was no falsehood.

“In the end, I beat that mage with a sword again.”

“Tch, you’ve lost your memories, but you’re really confident.”

“It’s because you don’t know that you can be more confident.”

“…Then what happened to that mage?”

“Hmm?”

“You said he was the one who beat the master in a magic duel, didn't you? A person like that would have surely become an incredibly great mage.”

“Umm…”

The possibility of another player being in the game.

After thinking for a moment, Artier shook his head as he pushed the rest of the sandwich into his mouth.

“He’s probably not around now.”

“What?”

“If there was another person like me, there’s no way this world would be so quiet.”

In a game, there is often what is called a set strategy.

If there was one more player like Taehoon, they would not have just passed by the ruins request seen in Dorman, nor would they have not participated in the Dorman defense battle.

Besides, Artier was the protagonist of this game, and there couldn't be two Artiers in one world.

It was right to see the ambush system as a system that was possible because it was a game.

“Hmm…. Do you mean that such a strong person could not possibly be unknown? I think I know what you mean.”

“Right? Now, let’s get going again.”

“Huh? Where are we going again? Haven’t we gathered all of today’s herbs?”

As Collie tilted his head, Artier flinched and froze.

He had only just remembered why he had wanted to eat lunch in the first place.

“That’s right.”

“Ugh, is there really nothing to do? Just buy me a magic book or something. It would be good to learn some new magic.”

“Do you think a magic book is a toy? With what we’re earning now, it’s not even close…”

Artier’s mouth, which had been speaking, clamped shut.

Tapping his chin in thought, Artier soon dropped his hand and said.

“A magic book…. Come to think of it, there was that place, wasn’t there?”

“That place?”

As Collie tilted his head, Artier gave a slight smile.

“Collie, have you ever been to a place called the Sage’s Tower?”

Tip: Tap/click the left or right side of the screen to go to previous/next chapter.