novel
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Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Nyoi_Bo_Studio
Rye town, Pyroxene town, Gold-panning town and Dragon-roar town were the four northwestern towns, located from south to north.
Rye town was the only place in the strip with a vast fertile land that was not polluted by negative energy. It had a developed agriculture and it was also where the mid to high-class agricultural products were from.
There were many mid to low-end gem mines in the vicinity of the Pyroxene town. Some rare, precious gems were occasionally produced in the mineral veins, which made it the place among the four towns where it was the easiest to get extremely rich. But the number of adventurers and lawbreakers in this town also ranked at the top among the four towns..
In the vicinity of Gold-panning town, there were also mineral veins of gold. Although, the condition of the gold was very low and its yield wasn't good. It was difficult to resist the charm of gold. There were a lot of people who wanted to get rich. Even though most of them were actually poor, they had made the town prosperous. But in fact, the main production of the Gold-panning town was copper and iron ore.
To the north of those three towns was Dragon-roar town, located in a narrow exit of a mountain pathway. By entering the mountains along the mountain pathway, one could arrive at a relatively less sterile area in the barren mountains. It was rich with all kinds of monsters ranging from elves to gigantic dragons and the main output of this town was the material from the various kinds of monsters. Who cared about how many people had died because they had been devoured by the monsters, which is a fact hidden under these materials?
It was originally planned that Gerrard, or Sui Xiong, would travel to Dragon-roar town. Their aim was to go to the dragon cave in the mountains where the evil dragon "Arctic Tyrant" lived and negotiate so that it would move its residence. This dragon had continually troubled the residents for more than five decades. If their negotiation succeeded, they could get the reward of five thousand gold coins. But now, they had more important things to do.
Hunting for treasure.
"Both are interesting: expelling an evil dragon and hunting for treasure, as it is full of the feeling of a classic role-playing game with European-style, " Sui said happily."The only problem is, which one is the major task? Also... is there any time limit for the mission system of this game?"
He did not worry about "mission failure". After more than ten days of adjustment, he had finished adjusting the shell of the jellyfish. Now the body of the jellyfish was in the vicinity and ready to exert his maximum strength.
When he did his best, he was fearless!
Sui Xiong's new body form was like a big translucent balloon. Below the body that was large enough to build a village on its top, there were many powerful tentacles dangling. Dozens of groups of spiral blades were distributed throughout the body, which were capable of driving the body to all directions. The body was filled with magic runes that enabled the body to easily float in the air. It could also change its color change at any time, as if it was invisible.
For example, at the moment, Gerrard was working in the Association of Adventure in Gold-panning Town. Sui Xiong's huge body, which would destroy the whole Gold-panning town once it fell off, was floating in the air and was two to three hundred meters above the ground. He narrowed his eyes, enjoying the agreeable breeze and warm sunshine while also absorbing infinite magic from the air and sunshine to enhance his strength.
But in Gold-panning town, no resident could see the big monster in the sky.
"To be an advanced player, it is necessary to practice and reach a higher level every day, without being sluggish. At least we should continue logging in. Move forward or you'll fall behind. Even a former master could also be overtaken by others if he spent time without practicing or even be left far behind. Just like those who write online novels; after a year of rest, you will find your popularity appallingly miserable and your favorite rate and click rate are far lower than before. The overturned cart ahead is a warning to those behind!
In an air current that was cold enough to freeze ordinary people to death, the huge jellyfish yawned silently and drowsily.
He was not worried that Gerrard was at risk. Aside from Gerrard's seemingly good fighting skills, he could also resort to the cloned soul in the bone bracelet if he can't deal with any of the troubles.
"Dear Sir, this is the bonus of the task of 'Destroying the Cavalry of Orcs and Wolves'". The waitress of the Association of Adventurers, also a half-elf, submitted a metal piece flashed with magical lights to him two-handedly, with her face full of respect.
Such a powerful man was, of course, respectable since he was able to defeat the bandit gangs raging in the four towns and cities for many years by his own efforts. If not for the big physical difference between the two of them, she even wanted to seduce the powerful man who was young. Even if she could not scrounge meals by dating Gerrard, she also thought it advantageous to give birth to a descendant of the giant after they had a sexual relationship!
In this world, inheritance based on blood relationship was very common. The descendants of the powerful were surely at a higher starting point than the descendants of ordinary people. As long as they worked hard enough and were blessed by some luck, they could become a familial force that one could look forward to as they passed on their genes.
In these four northwestern towns, such a family was the most important family. They were usually hidden in the dark and did not want to easily show up, so as not to become a target of criticism. However, all organizations were full of respect for them. They not only discussed major issues with them but also first considered them when sometimes they must share benefits with others if the benefits were huge.
Naturally, the young waitress did not expect to become a creator of such a big family, but this did not prevent her from daydreaming.
Gerrard took the nameplate engraved with a magic rune. He briefly checked it and made sure that the intelligence was correct, which meant he could use this nameplate to receive two thousand gold coins from the temple of the God of Commerce. He could not help but smile.
Even though he already had a huge sum of money, he could not but feel happy that he got such a big sum of money so easily.
"I'm also going to release a mission to recruit two people." He said, "One is a thief. For him, expertise in traps and no belief in Gods of Dark Night are required. The other is a clergyman. For him, expertise in treatment and no belief in Gods of Dark Night are required."
The waitress turned her eyes and suddenly understood a bit. She smiled and asked, "Are you looking for a companion to hunt for treasure? Why not look for an experienced mage?"
"We have a mage here, " Gerrard pointed to Palin, who was reading a book not far away, "Young as he is, he is quite reliable."
The waitress carefully observed Palin but shook her head slightly. She had been working in the Association of Adventure for several years and had long developed an unusual perspective. This young pygmy mage might be very talented and strenuous but obviously didn't have much strength.
Mages were divided into two categories, academic ones and practical ones. The former had the advantage of knowing a lot of spells and tricks, claiming to be capable of defeating all enemies when fully prepared. The latter was specialized in the practical use of spells, claiming to far excel academic mages. This claim was not a boast in that in some extreme and unexpected circumstances, more than ten academic mages might not be able to defeat a practical mage. Both were good at different areas and there were no absolute merits or demerits.
There was no difference of ranking in terms of the type of mage, but there was a gap between different magic casters. At the first glance, she knew that the young pygmy mage lacked experience and had a limited knowledge reserve. Even if he was not a complete novice, at least he was far from the name of an "experienced mage" or "war mage".
It wouldn't be realistic to count on such a young man to help at a crucial time!
"To be honest, I think you should look for another magic caster." She whispered, "In that way, we can be prepared. And we won't be at a disadvantage even if you're prepared for it because we can allow that young mage to learn more about the useful experience of his predecessors."
Gerrard meditated for a moment and accepted this advice.
"Then please wait a moment, I would arrange for you the information and give you the list of qualified staff."
"It doesn't have to be so complex, " Sounded a voice with a little forced smile. But there came an elderly person wearing a light leather armor, whose face was filled with traces of hardships, "As for hunting for treasure, only the three of us will suffice. This big man, that little master, and me."
Surprised, Gerrard turned around and looked at him, thinking that this person was too old. He could not help but doubt this old man's strength. The waitress was shocked, so she hurriedly bowed her head for fear that her surprised look would be seen.
But in fact, her look had long been clearly sensed by the soul of Sui Xiong.
"Gerrard, this old man is probably not a normal person. Be careful."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Seeing Gerrard's look of inspection, the old man seemed very calm without the slightest panic, "My name is Ryan, 'Quick Hand' Ryan. I believe this nickname is sufficient to prove my strength. In these four towns, you absolutely cannot find thieves who are more powerful than me."
Gerrard frowned, "The nickname 'Quick Hand', though powerful, might not be related to traps and tricks. Are you a Golden Finger (pickpocket)? I want specialists with knowledge of traps and tricks."
This world was not a game, so of course, there were no levels therein. The strength and fame of adventurers often needed to be judged by their nicknames.
The nickname was not created by them. It was the Association of Adventurers that selected some nicknames based on the adventurers' past experiences and then let them choose. These nicknames were divided into several levels so that experienced adventurers could tell each other's strength just by judging from the nickname.
The adventurers at the lowest rank had no nicknames, just like Palin at the moment. These adventurers were fledglings without awesome power or convincing achievements. They were mere novices.
After passing the period as a rookie, adventurers got a nickname of the lowest grade. Such nicknames were described in terms of their appearance or equipment, such as the "Bald" Nyen during the past times. The nicknames meant that the adventurers had had a reputation and were regarded as somebody, which also meant they had no decent results but only could be recognized by others.
The title at a higher level was marked by a convincing achievement. Previously, the leader of Gerrard's adventure team was nicknamed "Shoot the Tiger", because he once shot dead a fierce tiger alone with a bow and arrow, which proved his strength. There were similar ones like "Chase the Wolf", "Chop the Bear" and so on, which were all evidence of battle achievements.
Above the above-mentioned levels was a level summarizing the adventurers' expertise. The adventurers who owned a nickname of this level had been distinguished in some respects and were regarded as one of the best in his class. For example, one adventurer called "Sharp Knife" must have a sharp knife, with which he would have cut off the head of an ordinary rookie when the latter only saw a flash of the knife. One who was called "Fleet-footed" certainly ran fast and it was almost impossible that you could escape his chase.
This was the case with the old man nicknamed "Quick Hand", whose nickname proved that he had a pair of very flexible, quick hands and was a first-class pickpocket. However, what Gerrard needed was a man who could help him to find out the pitfalls and crack down on the tricks. So no matter how powerful a pickpocket was, he would not be helpful.
In the face of Gerrard's questioning, Ryan raised his eyebrows, looking proud."Young man, it seems you don't know the situation in our four towns that well! The reason why I am called 'Quick Hand' is not that I am only good at stealing things, but that there was no second person with a pair of faster and smarter hands than I do in the four towns, whether we talk about stealing, trapping, or... fighting."
As he said it, with a chilling flash, six or seven daggers had been plugged on the ground around them in a messy way. Not to mention the waitress with an average strength, even Gerrard himself failed to see what exactly he did.
| ← Ch. 025 | Ch. 027 → |