Chapter 34: Infuriating News

Kieran spawned inside the Humble Inn when he logged back into Zenith Online.

A flashing icon appeared in the bottom-right corner of his vision, which was the reason why he chose to log out while inside a room. He obtained the Well-Rested buff that increased a player's experience acquisition rate by 20%.

Additionally, his stamina would drain at 50% of the regular rate for the next three hours spent in-game. While the effect didn't seem particularly outstanding, it was convenient for high-level players to lessen the tedium of leveling up in fields and dungeons as their levels grew higher.

Furthermore, the Well-Rested buff had different stages. Depending on the type of room used, the effects could become increasingly better. Sadly, in the eyes of the system, even the best room of the Humble Inn wasn't enough to trigger the higher stages of the buff.

To receive the enhanced buff, one would need to venture to a proper city and enter established inns. Those rooms typically had special Mana Circuits weaved into the room to collect Mana Particles and promote unmatched rest.

Kieran sat on the bed behind him and scrolled through anything worthwhile since he had just logged back into the game. Immediately, he noticed mail from Altair as well as the system.

The mail from the system notified Kieran that the lease involving the Medallion of Growth had concluded. In contrast, the message from Altair possessed the proceeds from selling off all of the equipment he gave him before logging out.

Additionally, to Kieran's surprise, Altair had reached Lv.19 with the help of the Medallion of Growth. He was only a single level away from meeting the requirement to challenge his class promotion quest. However, Kieran frowned slightly.

'Although it's best to get this matter out the way as quickly as possible, we're moving far too fast. If we progress too quickly, I may have to change some of my plans,' Kieran thought.

Practically all Dungeons after Lv.20 required a minimum of 10 people to challenge them. If there weren't enough people at the same level, then he'd have to hold on targeting specific dungeons. It'd be nearly impossible since he only knew 4 people thus far.

Consequently, this would force Kieran's attention to other viable side tasks. Of course, Kieran forgot to factor in just how long it'd take for him to clear the quest with the original wielder of the Berserk Path.

It had an SSS Rank rating, which meant it would be insanely difficult for his current level. But, the odd part was that its recommended level was Kieran's current level. He just couldn't understand the conundrum in this quest's rank and recommended level.

'Is his master the difficult type? I've dealt with my fair share of those. If he turns out to be one, I'll just have to get a read on him before I can potentially jeopardize my quest,' Kieran considered.

He then stood up from the bed and left the Humble Inn. He made sure to read through the mail carefully. Adding to the coins currently in his collection, his current wealth surpassed one Gold Coin after accepting the coins in Altair's mail.

It was quite shocking to think about, but it was also understandable. All equipment above Lv.5 was in high demand, especially rare-grade equipment, which stood at the crux of Zenith Online's current gear ladder.

Not a single unique item has surfaced amongst the gaming community thus far. Therefore, if one possessed a Lv.10 rare item, then they could be considered a well-geared character for the moment.

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Of course, there were also the anomalies like Kieran, who had two rare accessories, whose drop rates paled in comparison to armor drop rates. However, the low drop rate of accessories was well within reason. Armor sets were larger than accessory sets, thus requiring a comparatively better drop rate to complete them.

But, the odds of particular items dropping were affected by a Hidden Attribute with a base value of 0 known as Luck.

After glancing at his inventory and seeing more than one Gold Coin, Kieran rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Until now, no one paid attention to lifestyle jobs because they didn't present any value at the beginning of the game. Players could just purchase all the needed items from the shops inside beginner villages.

But, Kieran knew this wouldn't always remain the same. The prices of potions and elixirs would skyrocket once players migrated to larger cities. To accommodate the considerable demand for elixirs and potions, the shops, which doubled as subsidiaries of the Merchant Association, would manipulate the price, bringing it sky-high.

Potions and items were indispensable to players and NPCs alike, so the change wasn't something players could prevent directly. The only alternative was to cultivate individuals dedicated solely to Lifestyle jobs. Their progress wouldn't be interrupted by the need to level.

While Adventurers would need to visit the Adventurers Guild to enlist as proper Adventurers, players who wanted to focus on Lifestyle jobs visited the alternative Profession Union to register as Lifestyle players.

Instead of heading to leveling or even preparing to venture to the Wildes, Kieran walked deep into Gena Village until he came across a small shop. Unlike the one that sold potions and elixirs, this shop strictly sold scrolls of various types.

Time had faded some of the markings on the scrolls, but that didn't inhibit a player's ability to peruse the information on the scroll. In Kieran's case, the system finally acknowledged Kieran's perceptivity to be sufficient.

As a result, a notification appeared before Kieran's view.

〈System: Your actions and prerequisite Perception has unlocked the «Inspect» skill.〉

「 Inspect (Lv.Max)

Skill Rank: Special

Mastery (100.00%)

Description: A skill that grants the user the ability to inspect items from afar and unearth information regarding obscure items. Allows the user to see party member information as long as they hold the role of a "Party Leader".

Consumption: No Consumption

Prerequisites: Strong Perception

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Cooldown: None

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Note: This special skill can't be leveled up, but more powerful variations exist. 」

Kieran's eye gleamed with delight as he read the notification.

'Finally! There's no longer a need to ask teammates about their current attributes. Though, I'm a little shocked because my Perception isn't 100 yet. I guess I have Grandma Agatha to thank for this.'

After obtaining the Inspect skill, Kieran swept through the store's contents quickly. Eventually, he came across the two scrolls he required. One rewarded the «Mining» and the other «Harvesting».

In total, a character only had three slots for trade skills. Additionally, only one space could be occupied by a production-type trade skill out of those three available. For example, forging, alchemy, and the like. The other two spots needed to be filled with auxiliary practices.

There was only a select number of ways to increase the available slots.

Even then, it was troublesome because they required a large amount of fame produced by Lifestyle feats. Nevertheless, Kieran immediately learned these two skills because they were vital. Monster drops weren't the only way to achieve materials.

Furthermore, Kieran needed to prepare himself for what others could only call the unexpected.

Suddenly, Kieran's notification bar flashed as a message appeared in the corner of his eye.

〈System: You are receiving a video call from Aspaira. Do you wish to answer? [Y / N]?〉

Kieran answered the call, but he didn't expect Aspaira's current facial expression. She seemed downcast and almost sorry. A direct opposite of her lively attitude during their dungeon. The evident difference made Kieran suspect something had happened.

"What's the matter?"

"Um… not much," Aspaira shook her head softly. After a short pause, she continued. "I have your portion of the coins we got from selling the useless equipment. It should be coming through shortly."

"Sounds good. But, that doesn't explain the long face." Kieran said. However, from the way Aspaira pursed her lip, it was clear she didn't want to mention what was wrong. Still, Kieran noticed some inconsistencies.

First off, her level was no longer Lv.14. But, contrary to what Kieran expected, it wasn't higher either. It was two levels lower! In other words, Aspaira had fallen to Lv.12 after the grueling work to get to Lv.14.

There were only a few ways for someone to lose levels. Either it was a cost for failing a quest, which was unlikely because all the quests with dire failure penalties were given by Scar. The alternative was death and not just one.

It required a string of deaths if the player wasn't in a dungeon with a set death penalty. Deaths suffered in the open world occurred in four stages. The first stage only commanded 25% of a player's experience bar and a chance of dropping some coins or an item.

However, the second death reduced one's attributes by 50% for one hour while also costing 50% of an experience bar. The chances of dropping coins or an item increased accordingly also.

But, Kieran suspected that Aspaira was killed at least three times because the third death is where the penalty became genuinely severe. The weakness period lengthened to 3 hours, a whole level was lost, and both coins and an item would undoubtedly drop.

On the other hand, the durability of one's items would also take a hit.

Therefore, Kieran's expression became increasingly gloomy when he thought of this matter. "Who was it?"

"W-what?" Aspaira yelped when she heard Kieran's severe tone. She wasn't aware that Kieran was very familiar with the Death Penalty System.

"The Shadow Cartel," Aspaira muttered reluctantly after suffering Kieran's intense gaze.

"Heh, good. Instead of focusing on leveling, they want to cause problems? Okay, we can play a little game then. I have time anyway. Also, what was the penalty, and who else was targeted? Was Altair not with you guys?"

"No, no. Altair was with us. But, all the people who targeted him were killed. Sadly, he had to log out because he was amassing too much Infamy. He started to kill anyone who approached him without waiting for a single attack to be launched towards him," Aspaira revealed with a bitter smile.

She felt they wouldn't be in this predicament if she was as helpful as Altair.

"As for the penalty... Well, we kind of dropped a lot of coins and a few items from our inventory. After being killed too much, we cut our losses and agreed to log out."

"Then… what about all these coins you gave me?" Kieran knitted his brow. Why did she mail him over 60 Silver Coins?! Only extremely hard Dungeons rewarded ample coins right now.

To this question, Aspaira revealed a helpless smile. "I'm sorry, but we can't rope you into something like this. You deserved your portion. So, we pooled our coins and sent 20% of what we got after selling the equipment."

Kieran sighed heavily. He cherished the fact they were people of their word, but he couldn't justify leaving them almost bankrupt after being hunted. Thus, a ruthless and cold gleam surfaced in Kieran's eyes.

It seemed the situation triggered some of his slumbering resentments.

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