Chapter 36: Chapter 36 - Rests by the Campfire

They continued their hunt in the forest until midnight when they decided to rest for a while at the edge of the forest. They quickly set up a bonfire and tents, settling in for the night.

Since players had 16 hours of real-world time to spend in Immortal Legacy, that meant they could be in the game for 48 hours or two full days of Yunatea time. However, player avatars had to abide by certain restrictions, such as the need to eat and restore their stamina by resting or sleeping, limiting the time players could spend in the game.

PussyCat placed the meat they had acquired from hunting that day by the fireplace and began making dinner. "It's so surprising," she said with a friendly smile, "we've really killed a lot of monsters today."

"Yeah," RememberMe replied excitedly, "and I have seen my Master's cheat skills multiple times... I'm still trying to get him to tell me about the secret, but it appears he's the type of person who doesn't talk much."

Broken paid no attention to the two. Instead, he sat by Polly and petted the spirit beast.

RememberMe repeatedly tried to extract information from Broken about how he could use such powerful skills despite his low level. He was also curious about how the drops from monsters were always more plentiful when Broken dealt the final blow.

Throughout the day of monster hunting, they divided the rewards fairly. For half of the hunts, Broken delivered the final hit and took all the loot. For the other half, RememberMe and his party took turns delivering the final blow and claimed all the drops.

Even with this arrangement, it was evident that the drops from monsters were significantly higher when Broken delivered the final hit. He consistently received more monster parts and Monster Cores than expected. RememberMe kept bringing up the time he saw Broken obtain two Monster Cores from a single monster, which logically seemed impossible.

Fortunately, PussyCat and Forev didn't pay much attention to RememberMe's complaints. They respected the possibility that Broken had secrets he preferred to keep hidden. They trusted that there were no cheats in the game, which was enough to assure them that everyone received fair treatment within Immortal Legacy.

Broken checked his inventory and counted the monster cores he had acquired. In total, he counted six common monster cores and two rare monster cores, one of which he had given to Polly.

Broken checked Polly's stats and found that she had 10 stat points available, which she had acquired from fighting monsters and consuming monster cores that day. "I think you'll become strong quickly if you keep this up, Polly," he said. "You only need to hunt whenever there's an opportunity, while I may not always be able to accompany you."

He had already explained the reason to her before.

"Yes, Master… I will keep getting stronger… I will continue to hunt monsters."

"Let's spend the stat points on your Strength."

[Name: Polly

Level: 98

Race: Nine-Tailed Fox

Health: 1570 Mana: 1896

Strength: 222 Agility: 380 Intelligence: 158 Constitution: 157 Stamina: 170]

"Alright," Broken nodded slowly, "I think with this stats combination you'll have more damage potential to match your agile moves."

That day, Polly truly demonstrated her capability in monster hunting. She proved to be extremely useful with her set of skills. Polly could use her clone skill to distract monsters, and her physical attacks dealt significant damage. Additionally, when facing monsters that relied on magic damage, Polly easily withstood their attacks due to her high magic resistance.

Despite having the lowest level among the group, Broken's deficiencies were well compensated by Polly's presence. His low level and lack of substantial armor, combined with his nearly destroyed sword, were significant limitations. Polly's skills and resilience filled those gaps effectively.

Broken had to decline RememberMe's offer to borrow him a sword, as he wanted to avoid the incessant talking. For someone like Broken, who preferred silence over endless chatter, dealing with RememberMe was particularly challenging.

They then enjoyed their night's rest, the flickering flames of the campfire lighting their faces, accompanied by the soft glow of the moon. Without realizing it, they had spent the entire day hunting together. What started as RememberMe's sole responsibility to help Broken with hunting had turned into a group effort with PussyCat and Forev joining in. This made the hunting process easier and more efficient. Broken also benefited greatly from this, acquiring more resources than he had anticipated.

High-level Monster Cores have a significant monetary value, surpassing what he could have earned at his convenience store job. He even thought about getting quick money by selling the rare monster core, but he tried to restrain himself for a while. Because monster cores also have many benefits that he can make more use of later.

"Broken, take this," PussyCat said, handing him a piece of roasted meat with a smile. She then sat down near him while the others enjoyed their dinner.

"It's thanks to you that we can eat meat tonight," she said, giggling.

Broken sighed and shook his head. "I know I'm just a low-level player compared to you guys."

PussyCat chuckled and replied, "Don't worry, we've been playing for over two years but our level is still the same. Being high-level doesn't necessarily mean we're experts."

"This is so lame. We could be eating something better in town," RememberMe complained.

It was Broken's first time hunting monsters with other players in the game. Previously, he had never stayed logged in for this long. In the real world, he didn't have many friends, so this was a new experience for him. Without realizing it, the three of them had helped him significantly throughout the day.

"Thanks for the assistance, PussyCat, Forev," he said.

Forev remained silent, while PussyCat giggled. "I'm so happy to hear you say thank you," she said. "But we were just covering for our friend's mistakes. He's always causing trouble in the game."

"This is just my way of having fun, hahaha," RememberMe added.

Broken smiled faintly and nodded. He sensed that, despite their constant banter and teasing, the three players shared a close bond. Gradually, Broken began to feel a sense of security around them. Even with RememberMe's tendency to say whatever was on his mind, he had proven himself capable throughout the day, providing backup when PussyCat and Forev were in danger.

At this point, Broken realized he might need his own party members to progress more effectively in the game. However, his relationship with the trio would end once his contract with RememberMe expired, in less than a day.

Broken then stood, drawing everyone's attention.

"I'm leaving for a few hours to meet someone. You guys can wait for me here or log out. We'll meet again early in the morning," he said, looking at RememberMe. "At least, you and I."

"Don't worry, Master," RememberMe said emphatically. "I will wait for you here. I don't really have anything to do outside the game, haha."

"Okay then. I'll be off," he said.

Broken then asked Polly to transform into her battle form. He needed to continue his search for the Moonstone. Sticking with his initial plan, he needed to visit the miners, hoping to obtain important information from them.