adbindia Chapter 108 : To Become 4th-Rank (3)
Chapter 108 : To Become 4th-Rank (3)
To Become 4th-Rank (3)
The Ice Bear I caught today was 1.5 times the size of the one I caught yesterday.
Furthermore, the demonic lizard beast was just about as big as an average adult man.
Even if I estimated conservatively, their combined weight would be at least 500kg.
To haul all this—
'This'll be perfect for endurance training. Hehehe.'
Sometimes, you need to spice up your training regimen with something different.
Summoning up the power of positive thinking, I hefted the lizard beast's corpse onto my left shoulder and gripped the rope slung over my other shoulder with both hands.
Naturally, this rope was tied to the bear's body.
Let's treat this like training and just go for it.
"Urryap!"
I leaned my body forward and took a step ahead.
Zeeek... Ssswik...
With every step, the sound of the bear carcass scraping against the ground echoed...
"Shit, screw this."
I released the rope and let the lizard corpse tumble to the ground with a thud.
Chulphudeok!
Damn it. Disgustingly heavy.
The Ice Bear leader was the real problem.
'Looks 1.5 times heavier, but it feels three times as much.'
It seemed that the density of its muscles and the strength of its bones were on another level.
And carrying along the lizard beast meat as well was just such a hassle.
"What am I supposed to... Ah!"
As the answer came to me, I couldn't help but laugh at myself.
The old saying that if you're stupid, your body has to work harder ran through my mind.
'Thinking about it, I can just test it here.'
The meat I ate in the minor Demon Realm before was "Imp's Wing," and an imp, according to Belkhazium's mob classification, counts as a "monster".
But this lizard was a "demonic beast," not a monster.
That meant—
'I should've tested right away whether demonic beast meat has the same effect as monster meat.'
I couldn't help but sigh at my own carelessness,
though I rationalized it by thinking it was lucky I realized before reaching the camp.
'That's plenty smart enough, Ian.'
I flipped over the lizard's corpse, slit open its belly, and cut it up.
Skeugeok. Sseueuk.
"Ngh."
I sliced off some bright red meat, sashimi-thin.
By reflex, I gave it a sniff first—there was a strange gamey odor.
'Still a lot better than monster meat, though.'
I still hadn't forgotten how awful the raw imp meat tasted,
but I quickly pushed those thoughts aside and threw the meat into my mouth in one bite.
Nyom.
Chew. Chew.
The first taste was fishy.
But the more I chewed, the more a strange savoriness and umami flavor emerged.
Not exactly delicious, but it could be considered a delicacy.
'Kind of like that raw pigeon tartare I had as a kid.'
Maybe it was because I was hungry.
For an instant, I almost wanted to dip it in sesame oil and salt,
but I just barely managed to restrain myself and waited for the system notification.
"......"
But nothing came.
Hmm. I felt like I'd eaten about as much as the imp's wing I tried in the minor Demon Realm.
Just in case it was a matter of quantity, I sliced off two more pieces of sashimi and ate them, but all I got was the taste.
"Guess it really doesn't have an effect."
It looked like "that other system voice" and [Chaos Awakening] only responded to monster meat.
Well, given that, there was no need to carry the lizard beast's meat with me.
But since the raw meat had such a unique flavor,
I decided to cut off a chunk of the lizard's belly meat to share with my employees—no, my squad members—and put it in my backpack.
"Alright. Let's get going for real now."
Once again I grabbed the rope and got into position, pulling the Ice Bear along.
Zeeuk-. Sseueuk-. Seuk.
Without the lizard carcass, it was so much easier.
Although today's haul was heavier than yesterday's, I felt like my steps were lighter since it wasn't as much of a hassle.
I decided this was a good opportunity to check my system window.
I could drive away all my stray thoughts, and it was important to check up on the state of the system while I was alone like this.
'Bestiary.'
I pulled up the Bestiary and immediately opened the Ice Bear entry.
A faint smile curled my lips as I read it.
〈Ice Bear〉
└ Category: Beast
└ Hunt Count: 12/100
└ Drop Items: [Ice Bear Claw], [Ice Bear Hide], [White Bear Bile]
└ Characteristics: Among the bears currently existing on the Belkhazium continent...
Just as I hoped.
Maybe because I caught a leader, the hunt count jumped up by 10 in one go.
Of course, that still left 88 more to go to reach 100,
but if I kept hunting during my time at the front, I should get there easily enough.
Now then, let's look at the tab I've opened and closed the most.
'Inn.'
[Inn]
〈Grade: Inn that's starting to gain word-of-mouth〉
〈Awareness: small city-level (294/300)〉
---------(Employee List)--------
〈 [1] Nanabas Lokario 〉
└ Grade: ???
└ Buff Application Rate: 50% + 0%
〈 [2] Plerine ☞ Employee of the Month ☜ 〉
└ Grade: UR (interim)
└ Buff Application Rate: 50% + 25%
〈 [3] Harper 〉
└ Grade: SR
└ Buff Application Rate: 50% + 0%
〈 [4] 〉
└ Grade:
└ Buff Application Rate:
Awareness was at 294.
The day I left the village it was 293,
so it seemed to have increased over a few days—Harper must've been doing well.
'Really, getting to the next phase is just a matter of time.'
I wondered how the next grade for the inn would be described.
This made me naturally start to miss my employees.
It hadn't even been very long, but man, I really was hung up on such things.
I let out an awkward laugh and looked at the empty slot for Employee [4].
I still hadn't decided who to put there.
Unlike [Regular Customer], once you assign someone as an employee, it's permanent.
'Meaning, once they're registered, that's it.'
Of course, going by order of joining, Clara should be next,
but considering their importance to the shop, Dunbell was a better fit than Clara.
However, when you consider the "buff application rate increases" for employees, then picking Clara, a 1st-rank, made more sense.
For similar reasons, I'd left "Employee of the Month" as Plerine.
An extra buff would be helpful for protecting the inn and village.
Anyway, employee [4] was still vacant, so efficiency wouldn't go up until I filled it,
'Such a headache.'
In the end, I decided to make the call after the inn ranked up.
Something else might unlock with a new grade, and I could choose accordingly.
Now, let's check the last tab,
the one that's sluggish but most important.
[Quest]
-------(Quest List)-------
〈 [1] Spreading Korean Food (Stage 3) 〉
└ Objective: Open a second branch of your inn in another region. (Progress: 0/1)
└ Reward: Unlock "Hearth of Link" for [Inn]
〈 [2] Raise the Inn (Stage 4) 〉
└ Objective: Increase the affinity of a Regular Customer to 100%. (Progress: 99/100)
└ Reward: Unlock [VIP] for [Regular Customer]
〈 [3] Survival (Stage 2) 〉
└ Objective: Advance to 4th-rank before the coming plot.
└ Reward: (Special Perk) 1 Artifact Random Box
The [Quest] window that refused to change for so long.
I sighed as soon as I saw it.
'All those rewards look amazing.'
I didn't know what the [Inn]'s "Hearth of Link" was, but every time the system unlocked something for me, I never lost out.
On the contrary, I gained enormously.
But I'd have to set aside the quest to open a second branch until after returning from the frontline,
and the real problem was building affection with Ralph.
'That [VIP] status for Regular Customer might be the key to achieving 4th-rank.'
All this time, Ralph's affection wavered between 99 and 98.
No matter if I secretly gave him extra rice and soup or gave him candy, it never hit 100.
At one point, it even dropped to 98, so I got annoyed and left him alone. That brought it back to 99.
So, tentatively, I'd come to this conclusion.
'Ralph's a people person—full of loyalty, but maybe he never fully gives his heart.'
You know how some people are:
They win everyone over, and seem easy to get close to,
but deep down, they always feel lonely and never give their heart fully.
Maybe that's why, when I asked him why he wanted to become stronger, he spouted "It's a secret."
"Hmmm."
What could I possibly do to get Ralph's affection up to 100?
Well, I did have a hint.
'Shop Window.'
[Shop Window]
〈Owned Points〉
[Satisfaction: 1,731] x 1pt
[Recognition: 426] x 10pt
[Emotion: 1] x 300pt
└ ▶ Nagel Ralph
----------
〈Purchasable Items〉
[Rice (150g): 1pt]
.
.
.
Whenever I opened my [Shop Window] and looked at my stocks of points, I couldn't help but smile with confidence,
but as soon as I glanced below Satisfaction and Recognition, my face went stiff.
'Should I use this Emotion point, or not.'
From Harper's case,
if you use an Emotion point, you get to see a key memory that helps you understand them more deeply.
That meant I could understand Ralph better too.
So, thinking rationally, I should use it right away, but urgh.
'With only one left for it to reach 100! It feels such a waste! Just one!'
If it were still at 95, I wouldn't hesitate.
But the number "1" gave me hope: "Maybe I'll hit 100 today!"
... Yesterday, today.
'I'll probably be like this tomorrow, too.'
Ugh, you efficiency-obsessed, frugal, gamer-minded idiot.
You penny-pinching fool!
Even I was starting to hate myself.
So Ian.
Get it together and use a damn Emotion point on Ralph already.
'This is not the time to think about efficiency!'
Thinking that, on the verge of tears, I kept walking forward.
"Who goes there!"
A guarded shout from the side of the camp snapped me back to myself.
Before I knew it, I'd exited the forest and was nearly back at the camp.
"Stop and identify yourself!"
Ahh.
Thank you, soldier, for stopping my mental spiral... Actually, now's not the time for that.
"This is Quartermaster Platoon Leader Ian."
Shortly after, the soldier who checked me called out.
"Huh? Platoon leader?! Why are you coming from that—ahhh!!"
The soldier flinched in surprise at the size of the Ice Bear I was dragging.
He must have been a new recruit, but the more senior soldier beside him ran up to me.
"Let us help, sir. What are you doing, achel! Hurry up and get over here and help with the pulling."
"Y-yes, sir!"
This is why it pays to be promoted in the army.
Seeing the two of them grab the Ice Bear's legs, I let go of the rope.
But—
"Ugh!?"
"Nnggggh!!"
Even together, the two of them couldn't budge the Ice Bear meat an inch.
It was so embarrassing just to watch, so I asked,
"Do you want some help?"
"N-no, sirrrr!!"
"We can take it from heeere!!"
Obviously, this wasn't going to work.
If I let them do it, the meat might not make it to the kitchen by tomorrow morning.
I was about to grab the rope again—
"?!"
My hands and legs started to shake uncontrollably.
I hadn't noticed before because I'd been lost in thought, but my body had built up more fatigue than I expected.
'So that's why they insisted on carrying it themselves.'
I grinned and said,
"You two—just focus on guard duty. I'll send my squad members over here."
Since I'd already made it to the camp, no one was likely to run off with the meat now.
I headed to the kitchen, where my men would be.
"Oh."
A happy sigh escaped me.
These guys who made corporal in special operations at such a young age were really a cut above the rest.
To think they'd learned the ropes so quickly in just a few days.
They'd set up an almost perfect kitchen.
'Looks like Ruth has been put to good use too.'
Ruth was prepping ingredients, pupils dilated, practically in a trance.
I left Ruth alone and walked over to Zaiya and Ricky.
"Any issues?"
"Oh?! Boss, you're back!"
Ricky beamed as he spoke, but it was Zaiya who answered my question.
"No issues to report. But boss, how did the hunt go?"
They belatedly realized I was empty-handed, giving me puzzled looks,
so I gave a sly grin and pointed my thumb over my shoulder.
"There's a huge Ice Bear over that way. Could you bring it in?"
No sooner had I finished speaking than a familiar voice sounded behind me.
"If you mean the bear, it's right here. Far too heavy for your average soldier to move."
I started in surprise,
but thankfully, since my body was so tired, I didn't react that much and turned around naturally.
"Hello, masked Swordsman. Hello, Company Commander Lantz."
Schutmann and Lantz were moving the bear in place of the soldiers.
As always, Schutmann wore that gentle-eyed smile.
I welcomed Schutmann with a smile of my own.
"I was about to send my squad, but thank you so much for the help."
I gave them a slight bow and kept an eye on both.
Ever since the spirit stone quarry battle, Lantz had been in charge of Schutmann.
'The role of 1st Company Commander is sure a heavy one.'
According to the battalion commander, Lantz still hadn't figured out Schutmann's true identity or intent.
So he was helping Schutmann, thinking they were allies.
'That's what makes him the most dangerous. If Schutmann does anything, Lantz will be the first to die.'
On the other hand, that could be flipped:
In any ambush operation, Lantz would be the most important person.
'He's always at his side, so he's easy to get or easy to attack.'
With that in mind, I stayed alert for any possible Brain Voice from Schutmann,
but unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—I didn't hear anything.
"Please take care of dinner for us tonight as well."
Schutmann gave a simple goodbye and left;
Lantz followed him out.
But to me, his words just sounded disgustingly fake.
'Like he's really going to eat. Yeah, right.'
That bastard hadn't had a single meal I prepared since we set out.
For obvious reasons.
'He's not ruling out the possibility I might poison him.'
But sadly, it was impossible to get a deadly poison in the North.
Unlike the South, with all kinds of venomous insects and plants.
Anyway, the guy was surviving on jerky and stone bread.
I figured it must suck for him, mentally.
'After all, this is Schutmann, who once couldn't stand it and begged me for a meal while sneaking through Granfen.'
For someone that crazy about good food
to watch other officers and soldiers eating delicious meat soup and rice while he couldn't—
Just that would be torture.
'He'll never taste my cooking again for the rest of his life, ptuh!'
Imagining myself spitting at him in my heart,
Ricky commented as he hauled in the Ice Bear.
"Boss, isn't this an Ice Bear 'special variant'?"
Hmm. So the correct term for a powerful beast is "special variant," not leader.
Noted.
'It was just called a leader on the community because of me.'
It really drove home how much misinformation there was on the community boards. I replied to Ricky's question.
"Isn't it obvious? It's way bigger and heavier than the one yesterday."
Ricky stuck out his tongue in awe.
"You mean you caught a special variant Ice Bear all by yourself, boss...?"
His eyes brimmed with respect,
and Zaiya was looking at me the same way.
Well, to take it down solo, you'd really need to be at least 4th-rank.
I started to do Faker's signature hush pose again—
"Oh, Ian! I heard you took down a special variant Ice Bear on your own."
Ralph's voice rang from behind, and I flinched as I turned.
Damn, word was spreading already?
For some reason, Ralph's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Is it true?"
Something about that question felt awkward,
but I had to keep up appearances, since my loyal subordinates were watching.
No way would I show weakness, so I answered.
"Of course. I'm Ian, aren't I?"
Ralph grinned, showing off his devil's chin.
"Good. Let's up the stakes for our next sparring—two levels. I'm looking forward to it!"
I wasn't sure if that "looking forward to it" was about dinner or the sparring,
but it was a moment that really floored me.
At that moment,
"Boss! How much longer are you going to keep letting Ralph win?"
Ricky said.
"That's right! Put the smackdown on him for real, but make it look natural!"
Zaiya chimed in.
You two really do think I'm a 4th-rank, huh? Hahaha.
"... Anyway, let's start cooking."
We shouldn't fall any further behind.
I grasped the Blood Iron kitchen knife in my right hand and approached the Ice Bear.
Pinggeureureu.
"Tonight's menu is bear stew. Go spread the word, Ruth."
The Ice Bear was mid-to-low rank,
but I was really excited to see what grade of meat the leader would provide.
.
.
.
Three hours later,
after dinner, I heard another system notification.
〈You have chosen perfect ingredients.〉
〈Bear Stew ↔ Ice Bear Special Variant〉
〈An additional effect will be bestowed.〉