NOVEL NEXT Chapter 5: (2)
Kaiyan worried that the soldier might demand to keep the ears of the Gnoll, like the shield soldier did the day before, out of greed. However, the soldier had a different attitude.
“No problem, we need to help each other. Please retreat and treat your injuries,” Kaiyan told him.
The exhausted soldier struggled to get up and limped back to the main base. Although Kaiyan was a little uneasy, since they were on the outskirts, he trusted that the soldier would safely make it back to the infirmary.
Kaiyan reflected on the battle with the Gnolls that had just taken place. “Phew… if you handle it calmly, you can catch Gnolls,” he thought to himself. Although he was hesitant at first, he gained confidence after catching a Gnoll. However, he knew that hunting Gnolls could be dangerous if he ended up fighting other monsters while doing so.
“First, let’s grow by catching goblins, and then I’ll have to face Gnolls when they come,” Kaiyan decided.
Kaiyan had grown enough to catch a Gnoll within a day, even though he had struggled to catch goblins until yesterday. He knew that he would continue to grow in strength and skill. So there was no need to act recklessly.
His goal was to kill all monsters, not just catch a few small ones.
With his strength recovered, Kaiyan began to wipe out the goblins. He didn’t need to swing his sword too much to kill them. Most of them lost their lives with one stab, and the lucky ones who survived the stab lost their lives to the following slash. While slaughtering the goblins, his whole body was covered with the blood of the monsters.
As Kaiyan was deep in slaughtering the goblins, a commanding voice boomed in the distance, “Return! Retreat! Today’s war ends here!”
The battle for the day had ended, and the order had been given for everyone to retreat to the base. Even the monsters that had gone crazy during the Monster Wave had returned to the forest to rest for the night. This was how the battle ended each day, allowing both sides to rest.
Kaiyan looked at his hands, stained with blood, and felt a sense of satisfaction. He had caught monsters until the very end. There was a thrill that started deep inside his heart, the feeling that he had grown unrecognizable in just one day.
Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Kaiyan smelled the scent of the battlefield. The scent was so strong that it almost paralyzed his nose.
He looked down at his waist with a satisfied smile, seeing that his pockets were full. Thanks to leveling up, his stamina was restored, but there were no more monsters visible in the area. It was too dangerous to chase after the retreating monsters and risk encountering a strong one, so he had to stop like this.
As Kaiyan walked toward the base, the barbarian’s sword was still stuck in its scabbard. Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice from behind.
“Oh? Kaiyan!”
He turned around and saw Jeff, who was covered in green blood, running toward him with a happy face.
“This guy! Were you really on the battlefield until just now?”
Kaiyan nodded. “It was easier to fight goblins after changing my weapon. Of course, your swordsmanship also helped.”
When Kaiyan showed Jeff his full pockets, Jeff looked even more surprised than before.
“Wow… how many are there? You’re really talented in swordsmanship.”
Kaiyan felt embarrassed to hear such words from Jeff, who slaughtered orcs on the deeper battlefield, even though he had only caught goblins.
“No, not really. Most of them were just goblins. I caught them with just an iron sword and the simple movements Uncle Jeff taught me.”
Jeff seemed impressed. “No, think about it. You caught these goblins with just an iron sword and the simple movements I taught you. That’s talent.”
“Okay, let’s rest quickly,” Jeff said.
“Yeah, let’s head back!” Kaiyan agreed.
“Talented in swordsmanship? I have the Swordsmanship skill, so can we consider that my talent?” Kaiyan thought to himself.
Both of them returned to base in high spirits without any significant injuries, despite having killed many monsters.
“Kaiyan, are you going to stop by the exchange?” Jeff asked.
“Yes, I need to empty my pockets for tomorrow,” Kaiyan replied confidently.
“Hey! This guy is full of confidence in just one day? Looks good! Hahaha!” Jeff exclaimed.
The exchange is where Union soldiers exchange the ears of monsters they have cut off for money.
In general, you can exchange money as long as you have more than 10 small monsters’ ears, 2 medium-sized monsters’ ears, or 1 large monster’s ear.
Kaiyan had only visited the exchange once before.
Back then, he had saved fewer than 20 monster ears over a long period of time.
“I have at least 30 ears in my pocket right now, not just 20. A lot has changed in just one day,” Kaiyan thought.
“Kaiyan, if you’re not planning to save money separately, it’s better to buy armor. Having good armor is like having a spare life,” Jeff advised.
The exchange also served as a shop selling various items, such as simple food, weapons, and armor.
Come to think of it, most of the shoddy armor Kaiyan was wearing was broken due to the intense battle today.
Wearing such armor and continuing to fight on the battlefield was as good as suicide.
“I’ll think about it,” Kaiyan said.
When they arrived at Jeff’s exchange, many people were already bustling about.
After waiting in a long line, it was finally Kaiyan’s turn. When he handed over his pockets to the bearded merchant, the merchant started counting while looking at his pockets.
“Hmm, 37 goblins, 2 Gnolls, a total of 19 silver and 90 copper. You look tough, but you’re skilled, aren’t you?” the merchant remarked.
“Goblins are worth 50 copper… Gnolls are worth 70 copper each,” Kaiyan calculated in his head.
He made 19 silver and 90 copper in just one day.
It was more money than he had expected, even though nine of the 37 goblins were the ones he had hunted yesterday.
When he received the money from the merchant and handed it back to him, the merchant looked at him as if to ask what he needed.
“I want to buy armor with this money,” Kaiyan said.
Kaiyan paused, lost in deep thought. 19 Silver was not a small amount of money, but it was nowhere near enough to equip himself with decent armor. “Um… I’d rather get one part that fits properly than not,” he finally replied.
But before Kaiyan could state which part he wanted, he was interrupted by Jeff, who had been exchanging the ears of a monster next to him. “I’ll pay an additional 80 Silver to get the armor he needs,” Jeff spoke.
Without giving Kaiyan a chance to refuse, Jeff handed over 80 Silver to the merchant. It was a significant amount of money that could keep an average family living comfortably for several months.
The merchant was pleased with the additional payment and offered, “Oh! Are you guys close? Alright, for 1 Gold, I have a suitable set of armor.”
Kaiyan turned to Uncle Jeff and exclaimed, “Uncle Jeff!” He tried to return the money, but the merchant took it away too quickly.
“Haha! Since I told you to get armor, I have to take some responsibility,” Jeff said.
Kaiyan protested, “Still… 80 Silver is too much. Besides… you’re raising money for your family.”
But Jeff dismissed the concern, “It’s alright, kid! And I’m lending it to you! So, don’t die to any monsters before you pay me back! Got it?” Jeff joked.
Kaiyan felt emotional and tears welled up in his eyes, but he held them back. Jeff had been the first person to treat him kindly for no apparent reason since his family was brutally murdered by monsters.
Kaiyan vowed to himself that if he succeeded as a player, he would repay Jeff. “I’ll definitely pay you back. Thank you,” Kaiyan said gratefully.
The merchant then handed Kaiyan a round shield with a metal plate and leather armor that protected the upper body. They were of fairly good quality for 1 Gold.
Kaiyan was satisfied with the round shield with the metal plate attached. Since he used a one-handed sword instead of a two-handed sword, he had more confidence in fighting with a shield, even though he had never used one before. “A shield…” he murmured.
Kaiyan then declared, “My goal for tomorrow isn’t goblins, but Gnolls.”
As Kaiyan put on the shield on his left hand, he became even more confident. He was already looking forward to the war tomorrow. The thought of slaughtering those pesky Gnolls was exciting.