After parting ways with Yukio in Salia City, their journey continued.
Their party now consisted of six members.
XOXO.
Taka.
Riz.
Mina.
Han.
Lexia555.
With Lisa joining them, the party now had two Warriors serving as frontline fighters.
Their next destination was Lake Tross, an area inhabited by Mostro far beyond the average player's current level.
Catfish Mostro Lv.40.
Lantern Pumpkin Mostro Lv.50.
“Aren't our levels way too low for this place?” Rian asked after reading the area information.
“They are,” Reina answered calmly.
“But that won't be a problem.”
Everyone looked at her.
“Mina has already learned Accuracy Buff.”
Mina nodded.
“As long as the buff is active, our attacks won't miss as easily.”
“But our damage is still low,” Tanaka pointed out.
“That's true.”
Reina didn't disagree.
“The Mostro here have much higher Defense than our Attack.”
She drew both of her daggers.
“So my main role isn't dealing the most damage.”
“Then what is it?”
“As a Rogue, I have a skill that lowers an enemy's Defense for a few seconds.”
She pointed toward a Catfish Mostro wandering along the lakeshore.
“The moment its Defense drops, all of you attack at once.”
Lisa immediately understood.
“So we're exploiting that opening.”
“Exactly.”
Reina continued.
“On top of that, Rogues have a much higher Critical Rate than any other job.”
“And if a Critical lands while the Defense reduction is active...”
“Our damage multiplies.”
Hana smiled in admiration.
“No wonder you chose Rogue, Ms. Reina.”
Reina gently shook her head.
“Most players think Rogues are weak because they only look at their Attack stat.”
“When their true strength lies in how you use their skills.”
That was precisely why so few players truly mastered the class.
The days passed.
They hunted relentlessly at Lake Tross.
Morning.
Afternoon.
Night.
Then repeated the same routine all over again.
Mina maintained Accuracy Buff.
Reina broke through the Mostro's defenses.
Tanaka, Lisa, and Rian attacked simultaneously.
Meanwhile, Hana rained magic down from the rear.
Ding!
Level Up!
Little by little, their levels continued to rise.
Reina, Tanaka, Rian, and Hana all reached Level 30.
Lisa, who had joined them at a higher level, reached Level 35.
Meanwhile, Mina reached Level 23.
“Just two more levels.”
Mina smiled to herself.
“I'll unlock another buff.”
Reina nodded.
“HP Buff and Mana Buff.”
“They'll help a lot.”
“They will.”
Even though they were still greatly underleveled compared to the Mostro of Lake Tross, the EXP rewards were enormous.
That was why Reina insisted they continue hunting there.
“At least until we're Level 60.”
Krsssh!
A Lantern Pumpkin Mostro finally collapsed.
A sword fell onto the ground.
Burning Sword
Tanaka immediately picked it up.
“Sir!”
Rian hurried over.
“It's a sword!”
Tanaka opened the item's information.
Burning Sword +3
Knight
Level 60
His eyes widened.
“It's already +3?”
The blade was black with deep crimson edges, glowing with a reddish-orange light like burning embers.
Hana walked closer.
“How can it already be enhanced?”
Lisa smiled.
“A long time ago, before the cities were rebuilt, Mostro used to attack human settlements.”
“They devoured everything.”
“Weapons.”
“Armor.”
“Manual Books.”
“Even adventurers' equipment.”
She pointed toward the Burning Sword in Tanaka's hands.
“If that sword had already been enhanced to +3 before a Mostro swallowed it...”
“Then the enhancement would still remain,” Reina finished.
Tanaka looked at the sword with sparkling eyes.
“I can't wait until I reach Level 60.”
The sun rose and set countless times.
Day after day passed.
Before they realized it, their levels had increased once again.
Reina Lv.47.
Tanaka Lv.47.
Rian Lv.47.
Hana Lv.47.
Lisa Lv.51.
Meanwhile, Mina had reached Level 35.
She had now unlocked two new buffs.
HP Buff Lv.1
Increases every party member's HP by 10%.
Mana Buff Lv.1
Increases every party member's Mana.
Those two buffs greatly reduced their Potion consumption, although everyone still had to remain within Mina's effective range.
“Huh?”
Someone's voice interrupted the hunt.
“Haha... there are still people playing Rogue?”
A Warrior approached with his party.
There were six of them as well.
All were around Level 50.
But Reina immediately noticed one thing.
They didn't have a Cleric.
The Warrior looked at Reina and laughed.
“What a weird class.”
Without asking permission, his party began attacking the Mostro Reina's group had already been fighting.
Rian clenched his fists.
“Hey! Those are our targets!”
“Don't care.”
The Warrior kept attacking.
A moment later, one of the other party's Knights walked over to Mina.
“Hey, Cleric.”
Mina looked at him.
“Me?”
“Come join our party.”
The Knight glanced toward Reina's group.
“Their levels are too low.”
“You'll level much faster with us.”
Mina looked flustered.
“I-I...”
Before she could answer, Reina was already standing beside her.
“Don't ruin our hunting spot.”
“There are plenty of other places to hunt.”
The Warrior from earlier approached alongside a Mage.
“You think Lake Tross belongs to you?”
“We can hunt wherever we want.”
“If you don't like it... then leave.”
Rian immediately stepped forward.
But Lisa grabbed his shoulder.
“Don't.”
“If we attack first, we'll be the ones in the wrong.”
Reina bit her lip.
Technically, they had no ownership over the hunting spot.
But stealing Mostro another party was already fighting had always been considered one of the unwritten rules of MMORPGs.
The Warrior smirked.
Then...
He left his party.
Everyone fell silent.
The Warrior raised one hand.
A crimson sword emblem floated toward Reina.
PvP Challenge
Reina's eyes widened.
She recognized this system...
Which meant this wasn't just some random player.
“M-Ma'am... what's that?” Hana asked.
Lisa explained.
“It's a Player versus Player challenge.”
“If she accepts, they'll fight one-on-one.”
“Why did he leave his party?” Rian asked.
“Because official duels can't take place while you're still in a party.”
“So that means...”
“The moment Reina accepts the challenge, no one else is allowed to interfere.”
Lisa then turned toward Reina.
A mischievous grin spread across her face.
“Rei.”
“Hmm?”
“Accept it.”
“Think of it as entertainment.”
Reina looked at the Warrior standing before her.
Then back at Lisa's teasing smile.
Slowly, the corners of her lips lifted.
“It's been a long time...”
She let out a quiet breath.
“...since I last fought another player.”
Reina opened the party menu.
Leave Party
Without a moment's hesitation, she pressed the button.
“Ms. Reina!”
Tanaka and the four students stared in shock.
The Warrior across from her smiled with satisfaction.
“Good.”
“Show me what your Rogue can do.”
In the middle of the wide plains surrounding Lake Tross, two players faced one another.
XOXO — Rogue Lv.47
VS
Aventura — Warrior Lv.50
Dozens of players who had been hunting nearby gradually stopped what they were doing.
One by one, they gathered around.
It wasn't every day that a Rogue accepted an open challenge from a Warrior.
Reina slowly drew both of her daggers.
Her gaze sharpened.
It had been a very long time since she'd last fought another player.
And she had no intention of losing.