[Exterminate: Rapidspin Snail]
Objective:
Eliminate 50 Rapidspin Snail (0/50 Rapidspin slain)
Rewards:
50 points
A snail? Can't be that bad… I hope.
After a quick breather, Axel dropped back down to the ground. He made his way back to the portal, navigating through the area with caution. Whenever he encountered a Duo Hound, he would pull out a stick from his [Inventory] and toss it deeper into the forest. The diversion left the beast momentarily stunned, allowing Axel to slip away scot-free.
The training grounds in the main world had marginally more people but with substantially more injuries. They were exhausted with wounds littering their bodies, marks of their rigorous effort inside the training grounds.
Axel took a good look at the weary crowd, surveying them. He felt lucky. Fortunate enough the greatest injury he sustained was mere scratches lining his forearms.
Axel entered the new zone, curiosity filled his mind about what antics the latest instructor might have in store. So far they had all been eccentric people, to say the least. As usual, there was a wooden platform located right in front of the portal connecting the Rapidspin Snail zone and the training grounds. However, instead of a knight gracing their presence atop the platform, there lay a sign with a message. "On Break. Head to other zones for assistance."
Well, that seemed pretty unprofessional.
Situated behind the sign was something even more unusual. A gnarled tree stump, its bark weathered and scarred, served as an unconventional pedestal for something quite extraordinary. Resting upon its uneven surface, shimmered a crystal ball that would occasionally release wisps of energy that traveled deep into the forest.
This was an even greater mystery than the knight in the previous zone. Why both of them let loose projectiles into the heart of the forest was a puzzle. But, at least in the previous zone, there was a knight stationed, but now the knight was replaced by some sort of crystal ball. He knew what arrows were, but these blue wisps that danced their way into the forest were an enigma.
Giving up any hope of solving the conundrum, Axel dived deeper into the depths of the forest. Flickering wisps would occasionally dart by his side, only to be devoured by the evergreen.
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The last quest was thankfully hunting a bunch of snails. The slow-moving, shelled creatures should prove infinitely simpler to dispatch compared to a pack of vicious dual-headed dogs.
Soon enough, Axel found his quest target. As the name advertised, it was indeed a snail, but boy was it the largest snail he had ever seen. Before today, the largest snail he had ever been blessed to lay eyes on was no higher than his ankles. But, this? This snail reached up to his knees, with a uniform forest green circular-shaped shell that blended in with the dense foliage.
The antennae-like eyes of the snail had spotted Axel, prompting it to retreat its slimy body into the hard dense shell.
Well, that's convenient, he thought.
As he walked over to his stationary target, the shell began to spin in place, like a wheel revving up. Axel approached it with curious caution, but nothing he had experienced in his whole life could prepare him for what came next.
The snail propelled itself at Axel at speeds he had only seen on the fastest of runaway wagons. It rolled towards him and rammed him straight in the gut. The wind and the bread he had for lunch were knocked out of him. Axel fell to his knees clutching his stomach in pain.
The snail, satisfied with its job well done, popped right out of its shell and resumed its leisurely journey, moving at its characteristic snail's pace, a sharp contrast to its inner speed demon from earlier.
Axel remained doubled over in pain, tears pooling in his eyes. He never could have imagined that a snail of all things could land such a powerful blow. It made more sense for the rat and even the Duo Hound to land a devastating attack, not a seemingly harmless snail.
Plus since when did snails start spinning and rolling like a runaway wheel? But then again this was the new normal, where the abnormal is normal.
Struggling with the pain, Axel slowly rose to his feet and managed to clamber atop a nearby tree for a quick rest as the throbbing subsided, but ever so slowly. That was the plan, and his plans rarely go accordingly.
Not even five minutes into his rest did he notice something was amiss. On the other end of the branch, he was lying on, a snail had managed to sneak up on him. It retreated into its shell, charging up for another attack. This time Axel knew what to expect. Drawing both of his swords, he formed an ‘X’ and blocked the attack. The blow was heavy, even heavier than the Duo Hounds attacks, but at least it followed a predictable trajectory, moving in a straight line.
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The snail gradually slowed down, its revolutions per minute decelerating to a crawl, until it could no longer maintain the momentum. As a result, it flopped onto the branch, and Axel’s hands were free from the heavy burden.
The snail remained in its shell, unmoving, pretending to be dead to the world. Axel began his flurry of attacks, striking at the snail's shell determined to get revenge. Despite numerous slashes on his foe, the snail was unaffected and stubbornly entrenched within its shell.
Panting from his Sisyphean attacks, Axel swore that he would have a higher chance of breaking open a rock than cracking this shell. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he lifted the shell and examined it closely, hoping for some sort of glimpse of a solution. It was then that he noticed the opening in the shell. Peering into the snail's home, a brilliant idea popped into his head.
Axel grabbed his [Wooden Training Sword] and inserted it into the hole. Repeatedly plunging it in and out of the opening, stirring and mixing it about like some sort of forbidden soup, until he received a notification.
[Rapidspin Snail was slain. Gained 5 points]
The shell that he held disappeared, being added to his [Inventory] along with a [Gold Coin]. After a couple of confused moments, apparently, the Rapidspin Snail dropped its shell.
The relief of finding a workable strategy helped to calm his beating heart. While the snail monsters were certainly less intimidating than Duo Hound, it was more than made up for by the pain their attacks could inflict.
Still perched atop his branch, his safe haven was safe no more. Axel sat back down, wary about any more potential sneak attacks, while he let the pain in his body subside. Much to his relief, there were no more attacks atop his resting spot.
He then dropped down and began his assault on the snail population. Each encounter more or less played out the same. Axel would goad the snail into attacking him, a task far too easy for his liking. His mere presence was enough to tempt these snails into a life of violence. Axel, however, wisened by his prior experience, could anticipate their actions.
With the help of his trusty partners, his swords, he would absorb their forceful blows. When they inevitably run out of steam and give up, flopping to the ground, Axel would begin his rehabilitation class. He would put a stop to their reign of violence, with merciless blows into the shells they call home.
The quest was completed without much difficulty, save for the minor hiccup in the beginning.
After the last snail was slain he received two [Quest] notifications and a [Skill] notification.
[Exterminate: Snails - Completed]
[Gained 50 points]
[Starting Out - Completed]
[Gained 1000 points]
[New Skill Earned: Basic Dual Wielding Proficiency - Rank F]
Now that his job was done, he began his trek back to the training ground, avoiding any snails that dared cross his path.
At the training ground, Axel followed the instructions he was given: to enter the exit building once the quests were finished. He followed others who had also completed their quests and made his way there. There wasn’t anywhere else to go, the giant wooden doors were much too heavy for any of them to even think of moving. Other than the portals this was the only way out.
As they entered the building, Axel found himself in a spacious gathering hall dominated by an elevated stage. Across from them stood sealed doors guarded by a pair of halberd-wielding knights. On the stage was another knight armed with a halberd, he would occasionally announce, "Please wait for a few more minutes as more people gather."
Axel looked about, noting how the crowd steadily swelled with unfamiliar faces. He underestimated the sheer number of people traveling to Pavhorn every day.
After a couple of minutes, the knight on stage announced, "Quiet down everyone. Now that enough people have gathered I have a few quick announcements to make. I'm sure that after going through the [Starting Out] quests you'll understand that life inside the barrier is more unique than outside. That's why the king has taken it upon himself to have instructors like us teach you a bit more about the system before diving head-first into it. Ever since the introduction of this little training session, we've had an increase in newcomer survival rates. However, running this little training session takes up a lot of manpower so as per the King's decree you will surrender all materials and gold earned during your session in the training grounds. Think of it as payment for these classes."
There was a large outroar as the people that had gathered immediately protested against the proposition, Axel included.
"Silence!" the knight yelled, "This isn't up for debate, if you want to leave then you have to surrender your materials."
Axel in the middle of the protest, shouting against the injustice that was being served, spotted a young man attempting to slip away from the crowd and through the guarded doors. It was the same white-haired man from the Dig Rat quest zone.
As the guard pushed him back into the crowd, the force caused him to stumble and fall backward. Fueled by anger, the white-haired man retaliated by reaching into his [Inventory] and pulling out his own weapon—a [Wooden Training Sword]—before striking back at the guard.
The guard took the blow with open arms, the strike against his chest was ineffective. The scowl on his face never changed. With swift retaliation, he shoved the man back to the ground and positioned his halberd at the man's throat.
"Hey! Settle down. No killing the fresh bloods or it's you whose fresh blood will be spilled," said the knight on stage.
"Now tell me, kid. What's your name," said the knight on stage.
"And why should I tell you?" the white-haired boy said, staring daggers at the knight.
"Because I need your name for the report I have to give later. Attacking a knight unprovoked? Not even a day into your new life and you've already made yourself an enemy of the kingdom. But, if you join the Order of the Horn we'll consider it a misunderstanding. A tenacious boy like you is always welcomed into our ranks."
"Unprovoked? You're out here extorting all of us!"
The crowd roared again, agreeing to his statement.
"Always the same with all these newcomers." the knight on the stage shook his head.
With a forceful stomp of his halberd on the ground, a shockwave rippled out, causing everyone save for the other knights to be knocked off their feet.
"Now that everyone has calmed down. Let me try to explain so that you all can understand. If you use a service you're expected to pay for the service. So since we helped you all learn more about the system, it's only right that you pay up."
"That's a scam! We never wanted any of these lessons. You just shoved it down our throats. You can't just—" the young man tried to protest.
The knight banged the ground again with his halberd. "You all should be grateful. You all can't fathom how many newcomers enter Pavhorn, and die immediately after setting off from town. After we set up this basic introduction the survival rates have skyrocketed. The wise king demands payment for his benevolent actions. Now open up your [Inventories] and take out all the materials and gold you collected. And hurry it up there's another group coming soon."
"No!," the white-haired boy shouted, "I'm not letting you tyrants rob me of what I've earned. Not again!"
"Like I said, we're not tyrants and we're not robbing. If anything, you people are stealing when you don’t pay up. But if you can't get that then there's no point arguing. Take him away.”
The knight nodded and swiftly struck him in the stomach with the butt of his halberd, knocking him out. With little effort, he tossed the boy over his shoulder, handling him more like a burden than a person, and proceeded towards the exit.