Overgeared

Chapter 228

Everything on the map seemed to have a smaller scale. Reidan, marked in the middle of the map, was only the size of a 500 won coin.

'500 won… A large city that can accommodate 430,000 people is only the size of a 500 won coin…'

It showed how big the west truly was.

The Eternal Kingdom was divided into four regions: the east, west, north and south. However, the size of the four regions wasn't constant. The west was the largest, followed by the north, east and south.

But this large territory suddenly became a desert. What if he destroyed the giant worms and restored the west? Grid was the next in line to the main power in the north of the Eternal Kingdom. He would be able to establish a unique position.

“Look here." Rabbit pointed to one side of the map. It was the Hebend River that penetrated through Reidan. “As you can see, the villages and cities are concentrated on the southern basin of the Hebend River."

Were there survivors in those places? But that didn't matter.

"What is the reason?"

"…?"

Grid was surprised by Rabbit's sudden question.

'Why are the cities and villages concentrated there? Why is he asking me this? How should I know?'

The Grid of the past would've expressed his disgruntled thoughts. However, the current Grid was eager to improve his thinking abilities.

"Umm…"

He used his lacking brain to think again. As a result, he barely found an answer. "Is it because of water?"

People needed water to live. It was a simple reason and answer. But it was wrong.

"You're wrong. Isn't it also easy to secure water from the north basin? The reason why the population was concentrated on the southern basin in the past was because there was something to attract people there, besides water."

“What does that mean?”

"It's the mines. As you can see, there's a small mountain range, so it's geographically possible."

“Mines?"

This was good news. It didn't matter if it was iron ore, silver or gold. Securing any resources, whether large or small, would unconditionally benefit them. It was good news for Reidan. However.

“I'm glad to hear it, but why are you suddenly talking about mines? It's just mines. You can take care of it with Lauel. Right now, I need enhancement stones. How did the conversation switch to this?"

'Indeed… There is this type of response when hearing about the possibility of mines.'

Rabbit realized it clearly. Grid was different from a common lord. He had little interest in his role as a lord.

'He only devoted himself to working in the smithy for the past four months.' Some people might blame Grid for being irresponsible. But Rabbit thought about it positively. ‘The duke is right. He might be the best blacksmith and warrior, but he is lacking in knowledge. It's better for him to stay away from the administration side.'

Despite their lack of political power, there were lords who forcefully tried to control their politics. On the other hand, Grid chose to rely on competent subordinates because he recognized his own deficiencies. He was the ideal lord who knew the limits of what he could do.

'He is truly wise and wonderful.'

Grid was different from the stupid leader of the Mero Company that Rabbit served in the past.

Rabbit continued the explanation.  "The Overgeared members have explored the southern basin to see if there really are mines. But there was a strong boss monster, so the Overgeared members abandoned the exploration and classified it as a danger zone."

“Which of the Overgeared members went?"

"All of them."

"What?"

The Overgeared Guild was strong. They were all rankers in the top 40. But despite them acting together, there was a boss monster powerful enough to make them retreat? 

'Is it at the level of the complete Hell Gao?' Even Grid wasn't an opponent for the complete version of Hell Gao. He barely managed to defeat Hell Gao after weakening him by taking two fire stones. 'The current Overgeared members are much stronger…'

Regas was the first member of the Overgeared Guild to obtain his third advancement class. He chose the Asura class. It was a fighting demon that suited his personality. Then Regas went straight to Grid and asked for a duel. It was revenge for losing in the finals of the PvP match. As a result, Grid won.

'I almost had to use my invincible passive.'

It was a shame, because the duel was after his training period with Piaro. After reaching the third advancement class, Regas was much stronger than before. It was the same for the other Overgeared members. But there was a boss monster in the west that they couldn't defeat?

'It is a terrible place.'

Grid clicked his tongue and prompted.

"So? What does that have to do with the enhancement stones?"

“Did you hear the explanation about why I invested more than half of the guild funds into the alchemy institutes?"

“I heard from Lauel. Isn't the effect of alchemy amazing? It can make various buff potions, as well as assign special options to items."

"There are many other things that alchemy can do. But most cities avoid investing in alchemy. It is to the point that even the richest cities that represent a kingdom are reluctant concerning alchemy."

"Why?"

“Because it isn't certain."

The effects of items made with alchemy weren't constant, but often random. Furthermore, the success rate of alchemy itself was extremely low. For example, even if the alchemy institute had the highest level, the probability of producing buff potions is less than 70%, and the probability of successfully giving an option to an item was less than 30%.

In addition, the prices of the materials needed for alchemy were too high. In conclusion, alchemy was a bad investment.

Grid frowned at the explanation. "What is this? Isn't it complete rubbish?"

2,937,000 gold out of the five million guild funds had been invested in alchemy. Grid felt like he had been hit in the back of his head.

'This man is determined to destroy me!'

Rabbit saw Grid's expression and explained. “I plan to develop Reidan into the second Talima."

“Talima? The dwarf city?"

"That's correct."

The dwarf city Talima was called the city of heaven. Regardless of the rating, it was said that battle gear with a special performance were widely distributed.  Even a small store would have a solid piece of equipment comparable to a unique-rated item, so many people wanted to go there to purchase battle gear. But it was impossible. Talima was located within the territory of the dragon Trauka, and was a city that humans couldn't enter.

“What if Reidan has items like Talima?"

Certainly, the city would be able to show off a unique presence. People would come from all over the continent to Reidan. Rabbit hoped that day would come, so he encouraged the training of blacksmiths and invested in alchemy.

“Alchemy is a way to make the items produced by you and your blacksmiths shine. I am convinced that the only city on the continent worthy of investing in alchemy is Reidan."

“Hrmm…”

If it developed the way Rabbit wished, a huge economic effect would be created. Grid hoped for that day as well. But.

“Isn't the success rate of alchemy the worst? Can we afford it? What if we have bad luck and become bankrupt instead of becoming the second Talima?"

“Do you remember Administrator Arik?"

"Arik? Ahh, the lord of this place until I was appointed?” Arik was a funny person. The episode related to him was a sight to behold. "Isn't he locked up in prison? What about him?"

"The reason Lauel didn't kill him was to retrieve information about the west from him. I was also able to gain valuable information from him."

"What information?"

“Somewhere in the west, there is a mine for yellow mithril."

“Yellow mithril?”

It was Rabbit's decisive reason for investing in alchemy.

“Yellow mithril is the material for fairy dust. And fairy dust is a raw material that dramatically increases the chances of alchemy succeeding. I am guessing that there is a yellow mithril mine in the southern basin of the Hebend River."

"Oh…"

It was a mineral that made it possible to overcome the low success rate of alchemy. Grid was thrilled. The radiant future of Reidan was drawn in his mind and he became excited.

“…By the way, what about the enhancement stones?"

He was still curious about the topic of conversation. Grid finally reached the limits of his patience so Rabbit cut to the chase.

“Enhancement stones can be made with alchemy."

"…!"

Grid's eyes widened. He thought enhancement stones only dropped from boss monsters, so he couldn't help feeling surprised.

“Generally, it is wiser to avoid making enhancement stones because the probability of success is extremely low. But that story will change if we get our hands on fairy dust."

It was the moment when the reason for Rabbit's lengthy explanation was revealed.

"So the conclusion is, please go and secure the mine."

"Okay."

Grid instantly replied. There was no reason to refuse. The boss monster might be hard for the Overgeared members to raid, but the story would be different if Grid and Noe's powers were added.

“Then I'll go immediately."

Grid was unstoppable once he made a decision. He immediately convened the Overgeared members. The Overgeared members were excited to be raiding with Grid after a long time.

“It's the first time since the golem invasion."

“We'll be able to knock down that monster if we have Grid."

Grid looked at the Overgeared members and asked them, “What type of monster is it? A demonkin?"

“No, it is a doppelganger."

"Doppelganger?"

A doppelganger was a monster that copied the form and abilities of the target. They were obviously hard to deal with but…

“Even if he turns into one of us, we have the advantage in numbers. Can't you easily defeat it?”

Pon explained, “As you said, the doppelganger is easy to deal with if it turns into one of us. But it's transforming into someone else who is much stronger than us."

Vantner continued. "It was really incredibly strong. The body is slim and the face is handsome, and he moves quickly while using a sword as big as Dainsleif."

Regas also spoke. “The way he moves the greatsword reminds me of you, Grid."

Faker added. "The basic moves are similar to Grid, but the sword techniques are several times better than Grid.”

"Hrmm…"

The opponent was that great? Grid was very curious about the power of the doppelganger that the strongest people in the Overgeared Guild were praising.

'I will soon see.'

The Overgeared members finished their preparations. Grid commanded, “Depart. Jude, you will protect Reidan along with the soldiers."

“Yes…”

Jude was disappointed that he couldn't go with them and stepped back.

“I will accompany you."

The continent’s strongest swordsman. It was Piaro. However, he was different from before. He was neatly shaved and wearing clean clothes. It was hard to imagine that he was a beggar a few months ago, as he was now giving off a strong impression.

“Please add your strength."

Grid gladly welcomed Piaro, while the Overgeared members were confused.

'Why is he taking a farmer along?'

A farmer was useless in a raid. What role did a farmer have in a raid? Farmers were meant to be in the fields. Lauel was about to say something, but stopped.

'That reminds me, isn't Piaro an expert in feng shui?'

Was Grid planning to use Piaro's power to secure useful lands?

'It is surprising. He's so clever…'

Lauel embraced the thought that Grid was growing. Grid seemed to be a completely different person than before.

OG: 

Current schedule: 20 chapters a week.

Chapter 229

In the National Competition and golem invasion event, Grid proved to be the strongest. But now two months of real time had passed after the golem invasion, so was he still the strongest?

『 I don't think so. 』 

『 What's the basis for your claim? 』

『 The performance of a third advancement class is far superior to the second advancement class. It's on a completely different dimension. Most of the top 50 rankers have reached their third advancement class, so Duke Grid, who is immature in control, is no longer unique. 』

『 I agree. Duke Grid overpowered the rankers in the National Competition with his items and class, but now he's lost the advantage of his class. 』

『 What if Grid overcomes his insufficient control skills? 』

『 Haha! The possibility doesn't exist. Looking at it from a professional point of view, Duke Grid has no talent for control. The only advantage he has is his items. 』

『 The advantage will be offset by the fantastic control of the other ranked players. 』

As the information of the third advancement classes started to be revealed one by one, the experts started to criticize Grid. In the first place, Pagma's Descendant wasn't a class specialized in combat. The experts were convinced that the third advancement rankers would be able to show skills well beyond Grid.

At the Second National Competition in Paris nine months later, Grid wouldn't be able to win.

『 Ah, fans of Duke Grid, please don't misunderstand. I'm not disrespecting Grid himself. He is a good leader who has absorbed the Tzedakah Guild, and also have talented people like Huroi, Lauel, Euphemina and Ruby. 』 

『 I also know that Duke Grid's blacksmith skills are great. However, we are currently analyzing Duke Grid's combat ability, so we have to criticize it. 』

In fact, Satisfy experts had a grudge against Grid. It was because their analysis of Grid during the National Competition was wrong and they were embarrassed in front of the public.

'It would be nice if Grid's era ends quickly.'

‘I don't want to discuss Grid anymore. It's embarrassing every time my analysis is wrong.'

Would these wishes come true?

***

“Sura Charge!"

Pepepepeong!

After converting to an Asura, Regas' combat power was twice as high as a martial artist. The enemy was confused by the punching and kicking changing trajectories, then he would dominate the battlefield by linking lightning and dark skills. The sight of him facing four giant worms simultaneously was excellent.

'He's stronger than when I won the duel. Has he completely adapted to his new class?'

“Nobody can call Regas a Taekwon Master now. Sooner or later, he will be called a war god."

"Yes."

As Grid and Lauel admired him, the spear knight aboard a camel started moving.

Puk! Puk puk!

Rumble!

Kiyack!

A spear knight's attack power increased when riding on a 'mount' such as a horse or pet, so it was a spectacular sight. Even the monsters in the west were unable to cope with his blows. But it was impossible to kill the western monsters in one blow unless they were Grid.

Pon soon faced five giant worms. Was this a crisis? No.

“Gatling Spear."

Pepeng! Pepepepeng!

The sonic spear moved several times in a fan-like range. Then the five giant worms became rags and transformed into light.

'Great.'

Gatling Spear exerted a power comparable to Pagma's Swordsmanship, Kill. Unlike the single-target Kill, it was a wide range attack. Grid was filled with admiration.

'I have higher stats than Pon and the performance of Failure is much better than Pon's weapon…’

Nevertheless, the difference in passive skills was too great. Combat classes all had the passive skill of Weapons Mastery, which had the effect of adding attack power. Meanwhile, Grid had a clear limit since he relied exclusively on Pagma's Swordsmanship.

[Pagma's Swordsmanship Lv. 2 (89.9%)]

-When the skill is deactivated-

You can become one with the sword at any time. Increases physical attack by 30%, critical hit rate by 20% and critical damage by 10%.

* This effect is only applied when a sword type weapon is equipped.

* The skill consumes no mana.

-When the skill is activated-

Become one with the sword. Wave, Restraint, Link, Kill, Transcend, Transcended Link and Linked Kill You can unleash a total of seven sword techniques.

* The effect of the deactivated skill will be lost.

* 20 mana is required to activate the skill.

* Once deactivated, it will take 10 seconds until the skill can be activated again. Nothing will be consumed when deactivated.

Pagma's Swordsmanship had a fatal weakness. The effect of the passive skill disappeared when he used an active skill. The effect of a 30% increase in attack power, 20% increase in critical hit rate and 10% increase in critical damage wouldn't be applied to skills like Kill and Link.

‘The passive skill only applied to the base damage… This is the limit of the class called Pagma’s Descendant.'

But Grid wasn't worried. Rather, he was overflowing with confidence.

‘Right now, Regas and Pon's strength might seem comparable to me, but that's only for the moment. That gap will increase again the moment I reach level 300.'

There was an old saying in games that 'levels were bullies.' That saying was also established in Satisfy.

10 stat points were gained every time the level increased, and users would become stronger as their stats increased. It wasn't just because of simple reasons like wearing better items or getting stronger skills, but also due to the unique function of stats.

For example, the strength stat. A level 200 user's strength stat had 0.3 attack power, 7 health points and a weight limit increase of 40 with every point. A level 300 user's strength stat had 0.4 attack power, 9 health points and a weight limit increased of 50 with every point.

In this way, the effect of the stats increased every 100 levels. This was called the stats awakening. The sum of the level 275 Grid's stats were currently higher than the stats of the level 300 Overgeared members. Looking at the total number of stats, Grid's level was nearly 380.

He went through a process called minus level, obtained special titles, and produced countless items. What if Grid reached level 300 and received the third stats awakening?

'The difference between our passive skills only applies for now.'

The source of Grid's power was his overwhelming stats. Grid was more familiar with this than anyone else, so he didn't have to be nervous about the growth of others.

'If I complete the Grid set then…'

He was the strongest.

"Huhuhu…"

'Why all of a sudden?'

Grid smiled and Lauel felt a shiver. It was like encountering a monster on the level of a demonkin. Then Huroi shouted.

"My Lord! Seven basilisks are present 800 meters to the south!"

The Overgeared members were nervous.

"Seven basilisks?"

"We should bypass them."

The respawn rate of the western monsters was unusually fast. If a battle lasted for an extended period of time in one place, they would end up surrounded by monsters. The basilisk was one of the strongest monsters in the west, so it was obvious they would face a crisis if they had to fight seven of them.

"There is a small mountain to the west. It might delay our journey, but we can bypass the monsters."

"I don't want to." Grid ignored Lauel's advice and grabbed Failure. "I haven't hunted in 131 days. I will use this opportunity to increase my experience."

The desert was a harsh terrain. Every time they moved, their feet sank into the sand, severely limiting their movements. The Overgeared members were experts in combat and already adapted to the desert terrain, but what about Grid?

The Overgeared members were worried. Grid's dull movements and lack of combat sense meant it was impossible for him to exert his full power in the desert. So they were going to move first to clear any monsters they encountered on the journey to their destination.

But what was the truth?

Jebeok jebeok.

Grid was armed with heavy boots and walked in the desert like it was a plains area. He even sped up and ran. This was due to the thorough education from Piaro.

"Huh…?"

"What has gotten into Grid…?"

The Overgeared members doubted their eyes.

Kiyaaak!

A basilisk noticed a human running over and opened its mouth. Then the light of petrification that also caused great damage flashed. It was a skill that was hard to respond to because the range of the light was wide and fast.

The Overgeared members were sure that Grid would suffer great damage. Grid lacked control skills, so he was always hit by monsters. They thought it would be the same again this time. However.

"Have I only fought you once or twice?"

Grid had moved to Reidan from Patrian. Grid had been taught by Piaro and killed numerous basilisks, so he already predicted this. He was able to accurately estimate the timing of the flash and fired Pagma's Swordsmanship, Wave to offset it. Then he approached the basilisk that was slowed, used Blacksmith's Rage and stabbed the basilisk in its weak eyes.

Kiyaaaaaah!

The basilisk struggled from the pain. Suddenly, the six other basilisks surrounded Grid and swung their tails.

"My Lord!"

"Grid!"

The Overgeared members paled. If the six basilisks attacked at the same time, Grid would definitely die. But Grid was already in the rear. He avoided four tails flying from the front, and defended against the other tails using the pavranium.

Jjeejeeeong!

Kieek?

The basilisks were confused at the appearance of the golden blades that blocked their attacks. They felt danger. It was because they saw the black eyes of the human in the gap between the golden blades, looking at them like they were prey.

One of the top predators of the desert was prey? This human was dangerous. The basilisks were instinctively engulfed in fear. 

"First one."

Grid stepped forward towards the basilisk that he had attacked first.

Teong!

The heavy weight of Grid's boots made the desert sand run loose. Then Grid's greatsword, which had a different power than before, struck the basilisk's wounded eyes. This wasn't the end. Grid evaded the basilisk's subsequent counterattack and triggered Pagma's Swordsmanship.

The sword followed the movements while he evaded.

"Kill."

Peeeeeong!

The blue greatsword reminiscent of an ocean predator penetrated the skull of the basilisk.

Kuwaaah!

One of the seven basilisks instantly turned into a grey light. The Overgeared members couldn't close their mouths as they watched.

“Is that Grid?"

The control skills that Grid used at this moment weren't particularly outstanding. Anyone who played the game could show such movements. But who was Grid?  He was mocked by everyone for having poor control skills. This person who wasn't talented was taught the skills.

He overcame the weakness in himself.

'Has Grid always been working where we couldn't see him?'

'How much effort did he put in?'

‘This is truly my lord! I am proud!'

“No, aren't you going to help me? Aaaaack!”

“…"

While the Overgeared members were feeling thrilled, Grid was becoming bloody due to the other six basilisks. The party window showed that his health gauge was exponentially dropping. The Overgeared members freaked out as they saw it and hurriedly moved to save him.

On the other hand, Piaro observed Grid's battle from beginning to end and clicked his tongue.

"Really, there are no signs of improvement."

Vantner heard Piaro's voice and shook his head.

'This farmer isn't sane either.'

OG: 

Current schedule: 20 chapters a week.

Chapter 230

"My Lord! There are 15 cacti in a cluster 400m ahead! It is presumed to be mine cacti in disguise, so pay special attention…”

“Advance and destroy them!"

"My Lord! Two golden toads in the oasis are mating! It is wiser to bypass them…"

"Two field bosses appeared at the same time? This is a jackpot! Charge!”

“My Lord! Dozens of desert toads are chasing us 800m in the rear! We have to speed up or they will catch us…!"

“Do they want revenge for the golden toads? Okay! Stop! We will meet the prey who are willingly coming to us!"

"My Lord… There is a small nest of giant worms below the mountain…"

“Go in and sweep them up!"

“…"

From the sky, Huroi was able to grasp the terrain in advance and discover the enemies. If he depended on his scouting ability as master of a drake, he would be able to minimize their clashes with monsters until they reached their destination.

But who was Grid? He was enthusiastic after not hunting for a long time, so the monsters of the west were destined to be destroyed. If Huroi discovered an enemy, Grid rushed in, rather than avoiding it. Due to that, the Overgeared members became tired.

"Pant pant! Damn, doesn't Grid get tired?"

"I feel it every time, but Grid's stamina is much higher than we think."

"Uhh… It's unbearably hot.”

It was very hard to march through the desert. The Overgeared members were top rankers, but they were also users. Due to the repeated battles and heat, their stamina was quickly depleted. On the other hand, Grid was fine. His stamina was twice as high as the Overgeared members thanks to his persistence stat, which he raised through labor and blacksmith work.

'No matter how strong the monsters in the west are, fields bosses have obvious limits.'

Field bosses were weaker than quest bosses or dungeon bosses, and their item drop rate was also low. Grid and the Overgeared members hunted one large cactus and two golden toads, but only obtained two epic items and five enhancement stones.

As Grid was feeling disappointment, "River!"

"We’ve finally arrived!"

The group arrived at the Hebend River. It was only 10 hours from Reidan. If they fully exploited Huroi's scouting ability, they would've been able to arrive within three hours. However, Grid made their journey at least three times longer.

"Grid, all the guild members are tired. It's late at night, so why don't we take a break?" Pon suggested.

Grid checked the status of the Overgeared members.

“I understand. Get ready to camp."

Stamina recovery was slow outdoors. Meals and simple rest weren't sufficient, so it was better to take a short nap. The Overgeared members gathered near the river and pulled out a tents from the inventory. They were impressed when they saw Grid setting up his. It was because Grid's setting up skill wasn't ordinary.

“Wow, isn't this great? It is the first time I've seen someone build a tent as quickly as Grid."

“Has he set up a lot of tents in reality? Does he go camping often?"

'What camping…'

Grid didn't have any friends to go camping with. The reason why Grid's tent building skill was so good was because he was thoroughly trained in the army. Grid had over 3,000 dexterity points, so he could set up a tent several times faster than ordinary users.

Were there any advantages to building a tent quickly? No. It wouldn't be helpful in reality unless he had a lover to go on a camping trip with.

“Let’s eat.”

Once the setting up of tents was complete, the Overgeared members sat down in front of a fire. The food they prepared was common.  It was the rainbow potato, the only food currently grown in Reidan.

“I'm sick of eating this for every meal."

"I agree."

The rainbow potato had seven flavors. The red portion had a meat flavor, the yellow portion was fried shrimp flavor, the orange portion was tangerine sauce, and so on. It had a soft, strong or delicious taste, but in the end, it was just a potato. Basically, it was hard because they had to eat this for every meal.

“It would be nice if we had a good chef."

In the case of a chef with high cooking skills, it was possible to make food using wild grasses and monsters. In addition, the dishes would give a small buff so it was a very useful ability.

'Euphemina can duplicate the cooking skill…'

Euphemina wasn't included in this raid. Currently, she was making a great contribution to the security and internal affairs development of Reidan by duplicating skills like the monster taming, blacksmithing, alchemy, building, etc. It was too much to rely on her for cooking as well, so Grid shook his head.

'We can't always depend on Euphemina.'

She might leave the guild. In fact, there was a limit to relying on only one person, so Grid decided that it was better to recruit users with various secondary classes like chefs.

"Now my eyes are tired."

"What should we do?"

The guild members finished their meal. Grid rose from his spot and proclaimed, “Leave the lookout position to me. Everybody, you should get a good sleep."

Grid had matured and was now sacrificing himself for his colleagues. But the Overgeared members refused.

"Grid is the core power of this raid group. You can't overdo it."

“Don’t worry. I'm still okay because I have a lot of stamina."

“It isn't enough just to be okay. You have to be well prepared. The opponent is strong."

In the end, Grid was excluded from being on guard and the members started to consult among themselves. The scheduled break was four hours. In the meantime, eight people should stand guard in intervals of 30 minutes.

"The eight people with the highest stamina stat will have to sacrifice 30 minutes."

Every time.

The higher the stamina stat, the higher the maximum stamina and the quicker the recovery speed. Therefore, the guard positions were always taken by the tankers. Vantner and Toban groaned.

"I'm tired of being a tanker all day long…"

“A tanker is a sinner."

It might be a reasonable method, but the tankers couldn't help complaining. Lauel watched them and made a wise suggestion.

"Why doesn't Piaro stand guard?"

On the way here.  It was obvious but Piaro didn't take part in any battles. He just had to walk. Lauel guessed that Piaro still had a lot of stamina left.

'A legendary farmer should have high basic stats… A four hour guard shift shouldn't be a huge burden to him.'

Piaro readily nodded at Lauel's suggestion. “I understand. Leave it to me and get a good night's sleep."

"Ohh!"

The faces of the Overgeared members brightened. They didn't know why Piaro participated in this raid, but they were delighted that he was here. However, some people showed negative reactions.

“This is a danger zone, so we shouldn't leave the guard position to a farmer."

“That’s right. What if monsters hide in the fog at dawn and attack? A farmer wouldn't be able to detect the attack of a monster, so we will be vulnerable to danger."

'They don't know the honor it is to have a great swordsman standing guard…'

Grid found this situation hilarious. How long would they mistake Piaro for a farmer? It was interesting to watch since he knew the truth. He smiled and settled the situation. "You shouldn't doubt Piaro's ability to be a lookout. Don't you know that he is a legendary farmer, not an ordinary farmer?"

"…?"

The Overgeared members were confused.

“Why should a legendary farmer be good at being a lookout?"

"Explain it so that we can understand."

“…"

Grid was stressed because the members asked for clarification. It was impossible to give a convincing explanation since it was just a thoughtless remark that he spoke.

At that moment, Lauel made a guess. “Farmers have to protect their fields from ice, beasts and monsters. A legendary farmer should have an excellent ability to defend his fields, meaning that his ability to sense beasts and monsters is sharp. This is the reason why Grid told us to trust the legendary farmer."

“That’s right.”

Grid agreed with Lauel's interpretation. The Overgeared members with a negative reaction started to understand.

"I see… Farmers have this ability…"

"Okay then. Piaro, please work hard for four hours. It is a request."

The Overgeared members entered their tents. Pon was the last one to enter and he spoke to Piaro.

"There is a huge monster that lives in Hebend River. It's extremely powerful, unlike the golden toads that we hunted during the day. If it emerges, let us know without any delay."

"Yes."

Pon finally entered his tent. Piaro sat in front of a campfire alone and recalled the past.

'It reminds me of my days as a knight.'

During his time in the Red Knights, they went on many expeditions and set up campsites. At that time, he was with his colleagues. But due to Asmophel's false accusation, they were all dead.

Tadak. Tak.

“…"

Piaro was organizing the branches for the campfire when he suddenly shifted his gaze to the river. It was early dawn. Something was moving silently in the fog. It was hard to detect even by the most skilled person. But who was Piaro? It was extremely rare that anything could succeed in an ambush in front of a great swordsman.

“You are the monster of Hebend River."

Piaro threw the branch he was holding into the river. As he threw it into the river, something let out a sharp scream.

On this day. The top predator of the Hebend River for the last decade met its end.

***

“Okay, perfect.”

Grid and the Overgeared members slept for four hours and recovered enough stamina. They ate a rainbow potato and moved straight to their destination. They finally reached the edge of the mountains after passing through large and small ghost villages.

Grid and the Overgeared members no longer encountered monsters. Grid was puzzled by the bamboo forest that stretched along the mountain path.

“How was this forest preserved without being turned into a desert? Is this place safe from the giant worms?"

Lauel explained. "The doppelganger here blocks the path of monsters as well as humans. Thanks to it, this forest and the mine in the mountains behind it are safely preserved."

"Hrmm…"

It was a strange phenomenon where a monster defended the land from another monster. Grid felt great interest as he stepped into the bamboo forest. At that moment.

[You have entered the mysterious forest.]

[Your mind has become calm.]

[You will be helpless in the midst of this tranquility.]

[You have resisted.]

"Ugh…! This feeling is so disgusting."

“I just want to sleep."

With the exception of Grid, the Overgeared members were overcome by the helpless feeling. Their bodies became limp and they had pained expressions on their faces. On the other hand, Grid kept moving forward and was astonished.

"…Pagma?"

The center of the forest where bamboo soared into the sky. One man was sitting on a flat rock. He had an egg-shaped face on a slender body. White skin and red lips. His long eyes that were smiling.  He gave off such a beautiful and neat impression that it was hard to believe he was a man. He looked exactly like Pagma, who Grid had seen depicted on the murals at Loran Falls.

Suuk.

Pagma sat quietly on the rock and slowly moved. The silk clothes that seemed to come from the Joseon Era flapped as he moved and shifted his gaze towards Grid. The look in those eyes contained outright hostility.  

OG: 

Current schedule: 20 chapters a week.