Chapter 117

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 117: Tournament (2)

‘Oh, no.’

Could it be that nightmare again…?

At that moment, as if telling him not to act like he knew, Kim Minwoo quietly put his index finger to his lips.

Popo hurriedly nodded and looked around at the Awakened before speaking.

—Uh… eh… I will announce the contents of the first exam! You are all the same now, but you will each go to a different city.

‘City?’

Popo continued speaking towards the awakened ones who were grinning.

—You have one week. You are free to do whatever you want there. However, your actions will earn you points. The person with the highest score wins! Your scores will be periodically displayed on the notice board, so make sure to check and strive!

Popo then snapped his fingers.

—Well then, let the test begin!

[The first test is starting.]

[You have entered ‘City – 123’!]

[It’s a special stage where you cannot gain experience points!]

[Instead, your actions will now earn you points!]

[Accumulate the most points within a week.]

[If you accumulate a certain level of points, something special might happen.]

[Rules]

[* Only the top 50 scorers of the first test will advance to the second test.]

[* Previously owned items cannot be used in transactions.]

Looking around, from the architecture of the buildings to the people milling about.

‘It’s definitely leaning towards fantasy.’

He then understood what Popo meant by “the same but different cities.”

This one was City number 123.

There are probably 150 similar cities formed based on the number of participants.

“Hayang.”

―Coo.

“Stay close to Dad, okay?”

―Coo.

He walked down the street with Hayang, who had turned invisible.

The signs were written in strange, squiggly letters, but fortunately, he could read them.

Even the voices of the merchants shouting as they sold their goods were automatically translated and heard.

“Freshly baked bread for sale! 2 points!”

“Fresh fruits here! Starting from 1 point!”

It was similar to the Gates.

The letters and languages were all properly heard there too.

Seeing the sale of necessities represented in this strange form of points, it seemed like a world where points were treated like a form of currency.

‘They said points accumulate based on actions.’

There was still a lot he didn’t know about what actions would earn points and to what extent.

Grabbing one of the pedestrians, he asked.

“Excuse me, is there a mercenary guild here?”

“A mercenary guild? Try over there.”

“Thank you.”

When you don’t have a proper identity or money, the best thing to do in a fantasy world is to become a mercenary.

Following the directions given by a pedestrian, he soon saw a large building.

[Mercenary Guild]

As he entered, he saw rugged-looking mercenaries drinking.

Their gazes started to gather on him.

“A newcomer?”

“Heh, he’s got a pretty face, huh?”

Then a bald, muscular mercenary stood up and started closing in. The unpleasant smirk on his face was a bonus.

“Hey, pretty boy. Mercenary work isn’t easy. So, how about…”

“Three seconds.”

“Huh?”

“Get lost.”

“Ha! This pretty boy thinks he can earn some points easily…”

Thud!

The guy was hit in the face with a scabbard and slammed into the wall.

The mercenaries’ faces stiffened.

“What? Did Kundel just get taken down?”

“He’s a Gold-rank mercenary?”

Looking around, mercenaries either quickly turned their heads away or avoided eye contact altogether.

It seemed like the guy he just knocked down was somewhat influential among them.

He approached the counter.

“Can I become a mercenary?”

“Uh, y-yes, of course. Do you have any identification or anything like that?”

“I don’t.”

“Ah, I see. Then you’ll need to receive a temporary mercenary badge. A proper badge will be issued once you accumulate achievements. Here you go.”

The employee handed him a round silver badge.

[You have become a ‘Temporary Silver Badge Mercenary’.]

[You receive 200 points.]

[Current score: 200]

Seems like becoming a mercenary also earns points.

“A silver badge…”

“T-To raise your rank, achievements are important too.”

“How high can I go if I accumulate achievements?”

“Adamantium. You can reach there. Of course, you’ll need to achieve significant accomplishments.”

Bronze, silver, gold, platinum, adamantium.

The badges of the mercenary guild are divided into 5 levels.

“Where can I see the missions?”

“Over here.”

The employee pointed to a bulletin board.

Mission papers were posted on the bulletin board.

[Hiking]

[Climb the mountain]

[Time Limit: 30 minutes]

[Difficulty: Very Easy]

[Reward: 10 points]

[Beast Hunting]

[A dark mountain. It is said that a pack of beasts rules the place. Hunt the beasts.]

[Time Limit: 2 hours]

[Difficulty: Easy]

[Reward: 50 points]

[Encounter with a Group of Assassins]

[You have encountered a group of seasoned assassins. Can you survive?]

[Time Limit: 5 hours]

[Difficulty: Medium]

[Reward: 200 points]

[Volcanic Zone Investigation]

[A hot volcanic zone. Deep within, an unknown cry can be heard…]

[Time Limit: 24 hours]

[Difficulty: Medium-Hard]

[Reward: 1,000 points]

[Village of the One-Eyed Giant]

[Exterminate all the Cyclops.]

[Time Limit: 48 hours]

[Difficulty: Hard]

[Reward: 10,000 points]

[Vampire’s Castle]

[Exterminate the vampires guarding the castle.]

[Time Limit: None]

[Difficulty: Very Hard]

[Reward: 500,000 points, ???]

[Remaining Attempts: 1/1]

“How do I take on a mission?”

“You just need to tear the paper there. Then you’ll be transported to that location. However…”

The employee glanced over here and warned.

“From medium difficulty and above, you die if you fail. So don’t just rush in.”

“Yes. By the way, about the highest difficulty mission over there. There’s a limit on the number of attempts. Does that apply to all cities?”

“Yes. If you complete that mission in any city, it will disappear from the list. Although it has never happened before.”

He nodded.

Hiking or beast hunting.

Even if he did these my whole life, he would only be stuck at the bottom.

Because the points are that scarce.

On the other hand, the higher-level missions?

If he could just manage to take down the Cyclops, he could earn a whopping 10,000 points in just two days.

Not to mention the Vampire’s Castle.

500,000 points.

It’s obviously an enormous score.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

He could roughly estimate the difficulty level.

Even the Cyclops alone were incredibly tough monsters.

Their average level was over 600.

They were giant monsters with far greater power than Ogres.

‘They said it’s a village, so there must be a lot of them swarming around.’

Taking down all of them was worth 10,000 points.

But not only is it 50 times the points, but it also gives an additional bonus?

‘That means the difficulty is at least 50 times higher.’

If the difficulty of exterminating a group of vampires is that high…

‘Are they all pure-bloods?’

The level of a vampire is determined by the blood in their body. Vampires with truly pure blood are referred to as pure-bloods. If the castle is swarming with such creatures, it wouldn’t be strange to give 500,000 points.

“I have a question.”

“Please go ahead.”

Whether it was because he took down a Gold-rank mercenary in one go, the receptionist was very polite.

“How are Necromancers perceived here?”

“Well… it’s not too bad?”

“Is it okay to summon undead and roam around?”

“Yes. As long as you don’t harm others, there are no restrictions.”

That’s how it is.

He immediately summoned Cedric and Merhen. A large skeleton and a woman holding a parasol. Even after seeing them, the receptionist didn’t seem particularly surprised.

Just.

“…Huh, you’re really a Necromancer?”

He asked, sounding slightly surprised.

“Yes. Do you also receive points if you work?”

“Yes. I get 500 points a month.”

“500 points. Isn’t that the same as climbing a mountain 50 times?”

“That’s right. But there’s one thing you overlooked. Ordinary people can’t do that within 30 minutes. Their bodies can’t keep up.”

So that’s how it is.

He nodded and looked at the receptionist.

“500 points is more than the average person earns, right?”

“Ordinary laborers usually get 10 points a day. Compared to that, it’s not bad.”

The fact that you can take on requests…

This was a world where it wouldn’t be strange to be treated as an elite just for climbing a mountain.

A laborer works all day for 10 points, but they give you 10 points for climbing a mountain for 30 minutes.

24 hours a day.

Even if you only ride a mountain for 12 hours, it’s 240 points.

24 times the daily wage of a laborer.

It’s truly a score bonanza.

Climbing a mountain is that good of a job?

‘Then I have to try the test.’

He summoned Hail.

“Hail. Tear that off and go climb the mountain.”

Hail ripped the paper with a snap.

At that moment.

[‘Haeil’s’ location has changed!]

[You are too far away!]

[Summoning has been canceled!]

‘That’s a shame.’

It seems like tearing the paper transports you very far away.

Point farming plan 1 failed.

But it was still okay.

‘I have more plans.’

They said they could do whatever they wanted, and scores would accumulate based on their actions.

Are the commissions the only options?

No.

He took out a decent weapon from his inventory and looked at the receptionist.

“How many points do you think this sword would fetch?”

“Hmm. May I take a look for a moment?”

He handed him the sword, and he examined it.

The sword he just handed him was one of the level 100 normal-rank items that skeletons could make..

After a moment, he nodded and said,

“It’s a decent sword. Bronze-rank mercenaries, and maybe even Silver-rank ones if they’re lucky, would use it. I don’t know the exact market price, but… I think you could get 400 points for it?”

400 points was the amount you could earn by completing 8 low-rank missions.

‘So this is the market price for normal-rank items.’

Usually, about three out of ten items made by the skeletons turned out to be magic rank.

Magic-rank items would probably sell for much higher.

He looked at the receptionist.

“Is there anything else you’re curious about?”

“About the 150 cities. How far apart are they?”

“Based on traveling by carriage, the closest ones take about a day.”

Malcolm finished speaking and took out a piece of paper to draw a picture.

A small circle.

And above that, another larger circle.

After drawing a series of circles like this, he said,

“Our city, number 123, is located here.”

Malcolm pointed to a corner of the largest circle.

Not too far away.

‘Good.’

From city number 1 to 150.

He thought they might be completely isolated, but that wasn’t the case. It’s just that the distance between each city was a bit far.

If it’s like this…

“There must be merchants, right?”

“Of course.”

The point farming plan.

It seems like he had found it.

Existing items cannot be traded.

It’s meaningless to make items with materials he already had because he can’t sell them.

But what if he made items with materials obtained here?

Would that also be prohibited from trading?

‘Probably not.’

Those aren’t existing items.

And a place like a merchant guild would naturally have a lot of materials stocked up.

There’s no better place to supply materials.

“Where is the biggest merchant guild here?”

“The Malay Merchant Guild is the most famous. They trade with thirty nearby cities.”

He nodded satisfactorily.

The method of farming points through crafting. It should be easy to obtain materials.

And it would be even better if there were a lot of consumers.

‘Thirty cities…’

There would likely be an abundance of silver and gold-ranked mercenaries. And the demand wouldn’t be limited to just there.

Cities would have lords, guards, and knights.

Good weapons and armor would be coveted by everyone.

‘This is great.’

He asked a few more questions. After getting all the necessary information…

“How do I transfer points?”

“Just think about it.”

And just as the receptionist said, he thought about it for a moment.

And then it happened.

[Would you like to give 50 points to ‘Receptionist’ Malcolm?]

‘Oh, it really works.’

He nodded.

[Points have been transferred to Malcolm!]

Malcolm, who suddenly received 50 points, opened his eyes wide.

“Why would you…?”

“It’s for the information.”

“T-Thank you.”

Malcolm expressed his gratitude with a bewildered look. It was a reward for answering his questions diligently even though it must have been bothersome.

“If you have any more questions…”

“No, that’s all for now. Thank you.”

He left the Mercenary Guild.

Even though he was accompanied by Cedric, whose appearance was completely skeletal, and Merhen, who looked like a human, the citizens didn’t show much interest.

As Malcolm said, it indeed seemed like a city suitable for necromancers.

After walking for about 20 minutes, my destination came into view.

Merchant guild.

[Accumulate the most points in a week.]

[If you collect a certain level of points or more, something special may happen.]

They said something special would happen if he collected points.

What could it be?

He’ll find out while farming some points here.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]