Short Wooden Spear (Common)

Attack: 01

Durability: 03/03

‘It is trash, but at least confirms that we can make stuff here to help us.’

“You didn’t get a skill, so I guess you can’t throw it and learn the skill throw or some shit.’

‘It would be too convenient if it were that easy. In any case, it is time to resume my hunt.’

If I could find some decent pieces of wood, I could carve a shield as well. The knife was sharp enough to make some decent things, so I should use it while I can. Considering that everyone was given one of those for free, they shouldn’t be expensive, but in times like this, it was better to be a bit cautious about spending, even more so when I could only buy information with money.

I approached the next hole in the ground and then immediately got ready to fight when the next dire rat appeared… they weren’t quite good at accessing danger since the beast charged at me despite my two weapons in hand.

Still, despite the fact that things should have been easier, I messed up… I didn’t aim the spear high enough, and the beast passed above it… it only got a bit of a scratch thanks to that mess up. Fortunately, my other hand moved fast enough to block the face of the beast with my knife. It smashed it against the blade and then began to screech in pain after it fell on the ground… I stabbed its head with the spear.

You received 01 EXP.

You received 01 Origin Coins.

‘You are quite bad at this. Let me do it instead.’

‘No one asked for your opinion…’

While I said that, my heart was racing… this should be the type of monster that anyone can fight. I shouldn’t be messing up with them like this. I moved the spear up and down a bit and then tightened my grip. I had to keep closer to my body and let the stupidity of the dire rats be their downfall instead of my clumsy skill.

Fortunately, the next target soon showed up and confirmed that those guys only targeted my head or neck… the beast got a nasty wound on its face thanks to the wooden spear that increased in size when the monster fell on the ground and I pierced its face with it.

You received 01 EXP.

You received 01 Origin Coins.

‘All right, this will do…’

‘Hey, come on… let me have some of the fun too.’

I ignored the other guy and resumed the hunt… I got tired pretty fast since I wasn’t exactly in good shape, but I recovered as fast when I ate some apples. They tasted as sweet as honey… while I was grabbing others, some dire rats showed up to take them from me, but I managed to climb the tree and then stab them with the wooden spear when they tried to follow me.

I avoided the tall grass since they would be able to surprise me, but that much was fine since there were plenty of holes in the ground and some of them had more than five dire rats inside them… when I passed nearby the others I had cleaned, more of them had returned as well.

‘I guess it is similar to spawning points… but it would make more sense if all the holes were connected or something.’

Since I was being cautious, it took me three hours to hunt all the monsters enough to level up… I was beaten thanks to all that work, but I guessed that the tension was the main cause of the exhaustion.

You received 01 EXP.

You received 01 Origin Coins

Congratulations! You have leveled up!

All parameters increased by 01. You received 01 free points.

Inventory is now available.

I felt a wave of energy spreading through my body and all my exhaustion vanished… my stamina was completely recovered, so I felt alive like never before.

‘Inventory.’

My exhilaration increased when the status window showing my inventory showed up. Now this made me wonder if it was really a game. I could see twenty empty boxes in a game-like window in front of me. I hesitantly grabbed the stuff in my pockets and then touched the inventory window. When I did that, they vanished from my hands and then their icons appeared inside.

Dire Rat’s Fangs x33

Dire Rat’s Tails x56

‘They take a single slot, huh? How much can it stack?’

I couldn’t help but grin… this was truly exciting. I decided to take some deep breaths to calm down since this was just the first step.

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‘I should return to the town and complete the quest and see what I can get with this much money… Speaking of which, no one came from there. There should be other gates, but…’

‘They are probably cowering in fear.’

When people find themselves in danger, their natural instinct is to seek external help to solve the problem. This behavior comes from a deeply ingrained survival mechanism: the recognition that safety often comes from collective efforts and the guidance of those perceived as more capable of such scenarios. In situations of extreme stress, like being kidnapped, this tendency is more obvious.

Even if just one person succumbs to panic, it can quickly trigger a chain reaction. Panic is contagious. When one individual starts displaying fear or irrational behavior, it heightens the anxiety of those around them. People instinctively mirror the emotions and actions of others, especially in unfamiliar or threatening environments. This can escalate the situation, leading to mass hysteria, poor decision-making, and the group becoming even more vulnerable to the circumstances.

I could already imagine what I would find in the town, so I hesitated a bit… Unlike the other guy, I would rather do things by myself instead of making others rely on me for my own suspicious goals as well.

‘I shouldn’t waste time… I should keep hunting during the day since at night, things will be a lot more dangerous.’

I returned to the town and soon the guards looked at me. I wondered how I could prove that I had completed the quest, but I didn’t have to.

“It took you long enough, but it seems you succeeded. Here is your reward.”

You completed a quest: Slay 50 Dire Rats.

You received 67 Origin Coins.

You received 10 EXP.

Guard Chark recognizes your efforts, you can receive quests directly once a day and based on their difficulty level.

Guard Chark - Lv 39

Bond: Lv 01 (05/100)

I rubbed my eyes… When the quest was completed, I could see that information about Chark, but not about the other guards. It made me think of a system of dating sims, where you do things with some characters and then your image improves in their eyes until they are your friend or lover.

‘... Maybe this isn’t real… it could indeed be a game.’

‘Hehehe, this is quite interesting. What if we could make it reach the max level of a bunch of girls? We could make a harem with ease! This is truly awesome. We gotta catch’em all!’

I truly refused to believe that those kinds of thoughts truly came from me… I couldn’t be such a degen. Maybe he was just my side that didn’t care about being morally correct or was one percent self-centered and only lived to indulge himself in whatever he desired. Even now, I didn’t know what he truly was or his purpose.

“Thanks.”

“No problem. Come again if you are willing to work for us.”

Regardless, I turned to the town to see a lot more people there… not thousands, but close enough and they were looking in all corners of the place for a way to return home. It didn’t look like they tried to leave the place, at least not yet.

‘Let’s see what I need… another knife, some arm protectors, a water bottle and, as usual, some more information.’

‘Let’s check the prices in the red-light district.’

I ignored that moron and then looked for the information broker again. Looking for those places was a good idea, but I could save time by buying the information. There is nothing more valuable in the world than time, after all.

“Hello again. It looks like you are still alive, huh?”

“... Do many people come here before only to die so soon?”

“Yes, a lot of them. I am surprised that the guards didn’t kill anyone yet. Putting that aside, I am sure you can buy some information now.”

“I want to know what this place is.”

“This is the Bivile town, the 513th zone of the Atlantis Continent.”

You used 05 Origin Coins.

“Atlantis… Continent? Not city?”

“This is what the continent is called here.”

“Here?”

“The information of where the continent is located will cost 500 Origin coins.”

This guy was truly selling all kinds of information, but it was still annoying to deal with such a greedy guy. I want to know why we are here and if everyone from Earth will come, but that information will be too expensive.

“I want to know where I can buy things, like weapons and bracers. A water bottle too.”

“You don’t have access to the Map yet, right? The information would be updated on the map if you had it… Anyway, the weapon shop is three streets back and the armor shop five streets back. We don’t have water bottles, but you can buy a canteen in the utilities shop close to the northern gate.”

You used 15 Origin Coins.

The information was a lot more chapter than I expected, so I wondered what I should do… I stopped to think for a moment.

“Can you only sell the answer to direct questions?”

“Of course not.”

“Then… Can you give me some tips on what I should do now?”

“Aside from hunting as much as possible, you should find and sell new materials as soon as you get them. The more people find them, the more their price will decrease. You also shouldn’t leave the plains until you get your first class at level ten.

You used 40 Origin Coins.

That was some useful piece of information… it made sense, but it looked like I would have to hunt thousands of dire rats to get my first class. It was better if I hurried up then.

“I see, thanks.”

Information Broker Lain - Lv 62

Bond: Lv 01 (25/100)

I blinked a few times when I was able to see that… this was very weird, but I decided not to think too much about it. I headed to the location where the information broker told me to go and I ignored the people around… those who noticed me looked confused as they saw me moving with purpose and not looking shocked or afraid of what was going on. I probably would if I kept thinking about every single thing, but it was better to focus on the positive of the situation.

I found the weapon shop thanks to the sound of hammer and anvil and the smoke coming from a chimney, but instead of a burly, hairy man selling weapons, I saw a blonde woman in her twenties with her hair tied in a long braid.

“Good day! What are you looking for?”

‘She is a solid 8.5 without make up… did you notice that most of the people here don’t have many flaws in their skin? Are you sure that they aren’t NPCs or something? It is fine to mess around if they are just NPCs, right?’

‘Shut the fuck up…’

This guy was giving me a migraine. In any case, I couldn’t help but frown since I only found basic stuff being sold in front of the shop. There was even information about the items.