Day 586 in This World
Early morning, Serimtul Village, about 25 km from Sera City
A village flanked by a river, woods, and swamps, rarely visited by adventurers. It sits awkwardly between the borders of Sera City and Serim City, making it less appealing than the previous or next villages. The monsters here are mostly safe-to-low-level swamp critters and insects, and the dungeons aren't worth the trip.
Even though there's a low-level dungeon, they say it's so monster-scarce that even the adventurer guild won't set up shop properly. Item prices? Dirt cheap. Nobody wants them—like slime scraps bought for compost at 1z a pop. (Ugh, reminds me of the old days.)
Creak!~
"Good mornin', Tris~~ Thanks for the help yesterday, sweetie~~~~"
"Yes, ma'am, thank you for the items and potions, Faren!"
"Aww, no need to thank me~ We're the ones who owe you big time!"
"Haha… Yes, ma'am."
Faren, a skinny woman with long, messy black-and-gray hair and a slightly pale face, is the only guild staff in this village… That's how empty this place is.
Still, it's not bad. For this quest, Volta guaranteed 15,000z upon completion, plus lodging, food (tastes like survival rations), and 4 potions daily… Thanks, Volta…
I don't actually use the potions, but not taking them would be a loss. I'll stockpile and sell them for pocket cash later.
Creak~~~
"Have a good trip, sweetie~~~~"
"Yes, ma'am!"
Tris (me) heads out from the second village. The path is lined with wooden houses and vegetable gardens, actually pretty lively (well, for the villagers). Probably because of the fertile crops… But this village's defenses? Pathetic. No walls, just a flimsy magical barrier to keep out mid-level monsters.
The map leads 1 km up from the village, where the forest meets a vast swamp—no way forward beyond that.
Burnet (bees), Bufly (flies), Bumosq (mosquitoes), Ant (ants), Term (termites)—insects bigger than in our world—swarm deep in the swamp. Dense as heck… Other monsters are fewer but level up as you go, thanks to the rich food source.
My quest? Use my skills to hunt at least 30 monsters daily by the village to clear out 5,000 total in this area… Bring proof for each one. Finish fast, get done fast.
Five thousand monsters? Two months, tops… Sorry, monsters, I'm clearing 300+ a day! Won't take a month, Volta! (But I'll pace it at 177 daily to hit exactly one month.) Levels are gonna skyrocket, and I don't even have to hunt far like back there.
Weak, abundant monsters and no competition? If they hired fire mages, pyromancers, or arsonist pros, they'd clear these easily but wreck nature and cost a fortune. A low-tier party as diligent as Tris would need 5-10 people, 5,000z each, plus lodging and supplies—way pricier than one Tris!
Talk about smart hiring…
Crackle! Fwoosh!
Alright, first, light five campfires… That's enough. This spot's a safe zone. If insect monsters chase too hard, I sprint past the fires, and they back off…
Oh, why not have Tris grab gear to burn them? Gotta bring proof, and the lightest, best parts are their wings… Burn those, and they're gone. Smoke just stuns them, not kills them. (Monsters have HP, y'know!)
Glances left and right Sigh… No one around, like really no one. If bandits came to trouble a cute girl like Tris, it'd be bad… But it's only 7 AM, probably fine, right?
"Here we go! Yaaaah!!!!!"
Slash-slash-slash-slash!
…
So why am I focusing on Tris and this place while digging into monster transfers? Obvious reason: there's something I want you all to notice!
The reason monsters are so abundant here? It's tied to those transfers. Some hero on Continent 10 does nothing but grind low-level monsters daily for some reason.
And it got me thinking…
Why do the Goddesses let randoms like Nerim, Waan, and Rejeen pop up with crazy high levels, or weird monsters like Fipa appear?
…
Rumbleeeee!!!
As Tris gleefully slashes insect monsters, dropping them like leaves, the swamp ahead suddenly reveals ten glowing eyes rising from the water…
"…What's that?"
Thanks to [Wolf's Nose], Tris senses dangerous monsters.
"Ribbit!!!" x6
"Whoa!!!!!"
Fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh!
"[Counter]!"
Slash!!!
"Ribbit!!!!"
"What the—!? It didn't die!? And my dagger… won't budge…"
"Ribbit!!!" x5
Fwoosh-fwoosh-fwoosh!
Even reacting fast, it's beyond expectations. Frog monsters, bigger than any Tris has seen, appear together… Way stronger than imagined. I have to check their data for Tris.
Frog Level 81 x5
FightFrog Level 101 x1
No way!? Level 80+ and 100+ monsters in a Level 1-10 zone!? Sure, levels have been high lately, but never this high!!!
End of Chapter 74
Tris's Quest to Slay 5,000 Monsters for 15,000z