章 5: Quest and Collecting Herbs

Nikos received a pleasant surprise from the system.

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Quest: Kill 10 Horn Rabbit

Level: Beginner

Description:

Inside Verdant Jungle, there is a monster area filled with Horn Rabbits. These creatures are quite aggressive and territorial, and their nest is full of them. Eliminate 10 of them and bring their corpses back to the adventurer guild.

Time Limit: 3 Days.

Rewards: 2 Gold 15 Silver + Additional gold for every 5 Horn Rabbits.

System Rewards: 5SC – 50 Exp

| Accept | — | Decline |

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What is this? Additional rewards? Nikos marveled at the unexpected bonus. Five system credits, this is equivalent to 50 gold coins – what a delightful surprise!

As he pondered over the quest parchment, Liriel, standing beside him, noticed his pause.

Snapping back to reality, Nikos turned to her, "Since we're both new adventurers, let's take on this quest."

Liriel nodded in agreement. "Yes, sir."

The pair then exited the adventurer guild and stepped out onto the bustling streets.

"So, where exactly is this Verdant Jungle?" Nikos inquired.

Liriel hesitated for a moment, slightly surprised by his question, before responding, "It's on the northern side of the city."

"I see. Let's head there," he said decisively.

They made their way north, leaving the city walls behind. Following the road that led them towards the Verdant Jungle, and Liriel often glanced at Nikos.

Catching her frequent looks, Nikos said, "You had something on your mind? Go ahead, ask away."

"Are you really not from around here, sir?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Yes I do. Why do you ask? Don't you believe me?" he replied, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"It's nothing," Liriel reply.

As they deviate from the main road and entered the dense foliage of the jungle, Nikos sidestepped briefly to pluck a small leaf from a nearby plant.

"While we're on this quest, let's also gather some 'Silverleaf'. We'll need it for potions to sell," he explained while showing her the slender, silvery-green leaves that emitting a faint, refreshing fragrance.

Silverleaf, is a common herb with purifying properties, that used in many potion recipes, including those for health and mana potions.

As they delved deeper into the jungle, they paused occasionally to collect various useful ingredients. Nikos took the opportunity to tell other ingredients they need to collect.

Kneeling to pick some herbs scattered throughout the jungle, Liriel gathered the ingredients while Nikos did the same on his side.

"Sir?"

"Yes?" Nikos was busy collecting more herbs nearby.

"Since you mentioned you're not from around here, are you perhaps from another continent, sir?" Liriel asked, still gathering herbs.

"Something like that, yes. Why?" he responded, continuing his task.

Liriel turned to him, her eyes wide with wonder. "W-what is it like living there?"

"It's quite different. We have transportation that's faster than horses, devices to communicate with anyone from a distance, and everyone could be whatever they want to be," Nikos explained briefly, offering a glimpse into life on Earth.

"Is that really true? It sounds so different from here," she murmured, processing his words with a sense of awe.

They continued their trek through the jungle, collecting ingredients and engaging in conversation. Liriel's curiosity led to more questions, and through their dialogue, they grew more comfortable with each other.

Eventually, they arrived at an open field filled with Horn Rabbits, the creatures they were tasked to hunt.

Nikos and Liriel crouched behind the trees, observing the area and its inhabitants while speaking in hushed tones.

"Is this the place?" Nikos asked.

"Yes, sir," Liriel confirmed with a nod.

"Are there any other monsters close to their habitat?" he inquired further.

Shaking her head, Liriel replied, "I don't know about that."

Nikos focused back on the Horn Rabbits. Without a ranger to scout properly, we could only go and attacking them, while observing from near. Nikos then look at Liriel and with a single nod, together they emerged from behind the trees.

The two dashed towards the pack of Horn Rabbits. Liriel, with daggers drawn, led the charge while Nikos followed closely behind, extending his hand to cast a buff spell on her.

— Boost Stats

Liriel glanced back briefly, acknowledging the spell with a nod, then surged forward with increased speed.

— Quick Strike

She unleashed rapid slashes on the unsuspecting monsters, kill some on the ground.

The previously peaceful Horn Rabbits, grazing calmly, turned aggressive at the sight of the intruding humans. Reacting swiftly, they leaped towards Liriel, aiming their sharp horns at her. Liriel deftly dodged their attacks, retaliate with precision strikes from her daggers. Despite her agility, a few attacks still managed to pierce her armor.

On Nikos side, he drew his steel sword from his hip, slashing at the monsters coming for him. However, his movements were awkward, some monsters were wounded by his attack while many struck back at him.

His inexperience with the sword also made his attacks lack precision. Fighting with a sword was definitely not as easy as one thought.

— Boost Stats

Nikos cast a buff on himself, making his movements a bit faster. He retreated and quickly changed his class.

{Class: Warrior}

The moment the class changed, his grip on the sword improved, and his movements flowed better. Nikos's confidence grew as he cut down the monsters at the right time, lunging and thrusting the sword smoothly. Having a different class definitely helped, smile formed on his lips as he cutting back the monster.

Then, from behind, five Horn Rabbits jumped at him.

Nikos spun quickly, raising his sword from below.

— Power Strike

He slashed through the five monsters cleanly.

Nikos and Liriel continued to fight, but more and more Horn Rabbits emerged from their nest.

Nikos retreated, while checking on his health.

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Health Point (HP): 293/900

Mana Point (MP): 108/800

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The previous buff had worn off, and my health and mana were low.

Nikos glanced at Liriel, immediately noticing her fatigue state, though she still stubbornly fought the monsters. We should retreat for now, we got enough information.

"Liriel! Retreat to the forest for now, there are too many of them!"

Liriel, focused on the fight, changed her stance as she heard Nikos shout. She could still push herself more, but unfortunately she needed to follow his order. She shook her head and immediately followed him, running back into the jungle.

They ran deep into the jungle until the Horn Rabbits stopped pursuing them.

They stopped, catching their ragged breaths. As they paused, fatigue finally set in for Liriel.

Nikos sat against a tree, thinking, while Liriel stood next to him, still breathing heavily and looking around the area, readying herself in case the monsters found them. Her hand rested on her daggers.

Nikos pulled out health and mana potions from his inventory bag and drank them.

We're fight on the outskirts of the area and from the size of the nest, it wasn't the main nest, just a normal one.

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Health Point (HP): 900/900

Mana Point (MP): 800/800

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Finishing the potions, his body immediately rejuvenated, feeling fresh again. The effect of these potions was truly wonderful.

"What do you think Liriel? Is that their main nest?" Nikos asked, handing her a potion.

She looked at his gesture and shook her head. "No, I don't need it, sir. Potions are expensive; you should save them for yourself in case of—"

"Enough. Just drink it. We'll soon have plenty of this," Nikos stop her protest.

She took the potion hesitantly and drank it slowly. The moment she finished, her fatigue vanished, her wounds healed, and her mana was fully restored.

"Now, tell me your thoughts." Nikos said.

"I'm not sure, but the nest is too small for the main one. I've heard that the main Horn Rabbit nest is inhabited by the Horn Rabbit King, but I didn't see any sign of it when we were fighting," Liriel explained.

Nikos pause for a moment to think.

Then, the main nest must be farther away, so it should be safe to go back there and slay the rest of the monsters in that area. This is the best thing you could do when you don't had any scout or ranger.

Nikos stood up. "Now that we know it's not the main nest, let's go back and slay the rest. Then we'll gather the corpses quickly and go back to town. Do you understand?"

Liriel nodded.

They returned to the field to finish slaying the monsters. This time, it was easier than before.

As they finished off the monsters in the area, it was time to gather the corpses. They collected 42 corpses, and Nikos put them all into the magic inventory bag.

"Is that all?" Nikos asked, to which Liriel nodded.

"I see. Let's head back; we're done for today."

They walked back to town as the evening set in, with the sun going down. On the way back, Liriel slowly opened up more to Nikos as they conversed.

Reaching the adventurer guild, they went inside and walked straight to Nori's counter. "Miss Nori, I'm here to claim the rewards for this quest," Nikos said with a smile, placing the quest parchment on the table.

"For the quest 'Kill 10 Horn Rabbits', could you show me the proof, sir Nikos?" Nori replied, bringing a tray to the table.

Nikos then pulled out 42 Horn Rabbits and placed them on the tray.

Nori's face showed surprise at the number of corpses. "Sir Nikos, are you sure you two are novice adventurers?"

Nikos's actions caught the attention of other adventurers in there, who turned their eyes on them.

"Please wait, I'll be back with your rewards," Nori said, nodding politely before heading to the backroom.

Moments later, she returned with his rewards. "Here are your rewards for 42 Horn Rabbits: 2 gold coins and 15 silver for killing the first 10, plus 6 gold as additional rewards for the remaining 32 monsters."

The total was 8 gold coins and 15 silver. One day of work could be spent on a week in the best inn room in the city. Not bad for a small quest. But this was just small money; I aimed for higher and richer rewards, a comfortable and luxurious life.

Nikos smiled politely at Nori as he took the rewards. "Thank you, Miss Nori. I'll take my leave now."

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!Rewards

- Quest Rewards: 8 Gold 15 Silver

- System Rewards: 5SC – 50 Exp

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He glanced at the system and smiled, then exited the building, closely followed by Liriel.

Outside, Nikos turned to her. "Let's move to our second phase."

It's time to make our product.