"Uh... please calm down first. I’ve only just received this quest, so let’s focus on solving the problem..." Lorin tried his best to soothe the man.
Old Hunter squatted down and clutched his head with both hands. His voice carried a hint of a sob. "How am I supposed to calm down? My wife yells at me every day, calling me useless and saying I can’t even guard a single barn. My son asks if I’m getting too old, suggesting we stop farming and he go out to be an Adventurer instead. I... I..."
Lorin was left speechless. He looked down at the parchment in his hand. It indeed seemed to lack a publishing date. "How about we check the situation first...?"
"Sigh...!" Old Hunter let out a tragic sigh, seemingly accepting this cruel reality. Only then did he find the energy to look up and size Lorin up. "You came alone to kill the rats?" he asked suspiciously.
Lorin smacked his lips. "I saw that this commission didn’t specify a head count."
Old Hunter stared at him for a few seconds before letting out another defeated sigh, rubbing his face with impossibly rough hands. "Fine," he said. "Kill as many as you can. If you can’t kill them all... I... I’ll just accept my fate. But if you manage to clear them all out, I’ll give you five extra Silver Coins."
"Deal." Lorin agreed immediately. Getting a bonus before the quest even started? Who could turn down such a good thing?
Old Hunter led the way. The barn was surrounded by a square wooden fence. Inside, chicken droppings and feathers were scattered everywhere, but there were no bloodstains. It was clear that the man had already moved his chickens to safety. Lorin carefully stepped over the droppings and unslung Rusted Throat from his back.
[Rusted Throat]
Equipment Type: One-Handed Longsword / Two-Handed Compatible
Quality: fine (Green)
Weight: 2.6 kg
Length: 43 inches
Durability: 115/100
[Heavy Swing]: Slightly increases damage dealt.
[Solid]: Unlikely to be damaged.
[Sharpness]: Slightly increases blade sharpness (only effective when Durability is above 90).
Notes:
"My craftsmanship is the best in the world!"
— Shallow Beach Town Blacksmith Hope.
Old Horton had reforged this Longsword, wrapping a fresh layer of hard steel around the edge and polishing it meticulously. Before setting out, Lorin had also coated the blade in the Sword Oil that Carl gave him. The results were truly remarkable. The blade now gleamed with a chilling light under the sun. Lorin felt it was sharp enough to cleave a little goblin in half with a single strike.
Seeing the drawn Longsword, Old Hunter finally started to believe that Lorin might actually be able to handle the rats. His tone even carried a hint of flattery. "I’ll open the door for you. Those beasts have been in there for days, so who knows how many there are now—"
"Wait!" Lorin’s scalp tingled. If he remembered correctly, the reproductive cycle of rats was incredibly short. These things were even mutated, which meant they probably bred even faster. But it was already too late. Old Hunter had pulled the barn door wide open.
Sunlight spilled through the doorway. There was not a single grain of wheat left inside the barn. Instead, dozens of red-eyed rats stared coldly at the two men at the entrance. The largest among them were even bigger than full-grown cats, while the remaining twenty-something rats were about the size of chickens. Their grayish-black fur gleamed with oil, and the hair on their backs stood straight up like steel needles, making them look exceptionally fierce. A few corpses of baby rats littered the barn floor. Likely unable to find food, the larger rats had already started slaughtering their own offspring.
Upon seeing the two living, breathing creatures before them, the horde paused for a mere second. Then, they instantly leaped from the ground, surging toward the doorway like a tidal wave.
"Holy shit!"
The leading rat was as fast as a black phantom. In the blink of an eye, it lunged right in front of Old Hunter, aiming straight for his throat. Fortunately, Lorin reacted in time. He dashed forward, grabbed Old Hunter, and yanked him backward with all his might. The sheer force sent Old Hunter tumbling to the ground, where he rolled twice, narrowly dodging another pouncing rat. Lorin’s free hand tightly gripped Rusted Throat as he delivered a forceful forward slash. Driven by his immense Power, the blade effortlessly split the rat’s head open. The thick skin and bones that the Demon rat relied on for survival were completely defenseless against it. The creature was instantly cleaved in two, falling to the dirt as its blood and organs spilled out in a messy pool.
[First Enemy Kill — Red-Eyed Giant Rat]
[Reward Obtained: 30 Exploration Experience points]
[Current Balance: 77 Exploration Experience points]
The foul stench unique to a Beast’s innards, mixed with an indescribable rotting mold smell emanating from the giant rat, made Lorin wrinkle his nose. "Ugh..." He held his breath, nearly gagging. Before he could even marvel at how effective his new weapon was, two more giant rats trampled over their comrade’s corpse. They scurried to his feet and snapped at his calves. You are reading on novelping dot com, the official source.
"Get away!" Lorin kicked one away and plunged Rusted Throat downward. The blade pinned the second rat into the dirt. Its four legs scrambled wildly against the ground as it let out a series of piercing shrieks. Gripping the hilt tightly, Lorin stomped hard on the back of the rat’s head. With a sickening CRACK from its cervical spine, the giant rat finally stopped twitching.
Lorin yanked Rusted Throat out of the ground and roared at Old Hunter, who was sitting frozen nearby. "Why are you just sitting there? Go get some lamp oil!"
"But... but the barn..." Old Hunter scrambled to his feet, trembling.
"Do you see a single grain left in that barn?! Hurry up and get it!" Lorin scolded in utter frustration.
"Right... right, I’ll go right now."
While Old Hunter was finally safe, Lorin found himself completely surrounded by the giant rats. Swinging his sword back and forth, he struck down two more that tried to leap up and bite him. However, another had already slipped to his feet and clamped its jaws onto his pant leg. The sharp fangs pierced his flesh. Lorin inhaled sharply from the pain and nearly threw up from the overwhelming stench. "Damn it, how can it act as a stink bomb even when dead?" he cursed inwardly. He felt a pang of regret for not buying an Antitoxic Potion. It was painfully obvious that he lacked experience for his first Adventurer expedition, and he had no idea if these giant rats carried any viruses.
This couldn’t go on. There were simply too many of them. Although they were weaker than a goblin, their small size made them incredibly agile. Even one bite from each of them would be too much for him to handle. Lorin stepped backward over the fence, forcefully slinging the backpack off his shoulders and tossing it aside to lighten his load. He didn’t dare turn his back and run. With his injured calf, he couldn’t run fast anyway, and leaving his back completely exposed was tantamount to a death wish. Unfortunately, the wooden fence was quickly gnawed to splinters by the swarm of giant rats. It wouldn’t hold them off for long.
As Lorin raised his sword to cleave a giant rat trying to scramble over the fence, he quickly scanned his surroundings. Having scouted the area before arriving, he vaguely remembered that aside from some scattered farming tools, there was a patch of weeds in the clearing outside the barn. Sure enough, the weed patch was just a short distance away. The grass had long since withered and died, standing a full half-meter tall. The yellowish-brown stalks were densely packed together, rustling softly in the wind.
Lorin’s eyes lit up. "Dead grass, fire," the thought flashed through his mind in an instant. He couldn’t necessarily count on Old Hunter’s lamp oil. He figured the man had likely already fled, so he had to test his own plan first. Taking a deep breath, Lorin vaulted back over the fence. He didn’t rush to run away. Instead, he placed his hand firmly on the wooden structure.
[Lorin’s Burning Hand]
The Flame instantly flared up. The section of the fence Lorin gripped was reduced to charcoal in the blink of an eye. Fiery serpents slithered across the splinters, rapidly spreading across the entire structure. "This should hold them off for a moment..." he thought, watching expectantly.
But then, the largest giant rat let out an ear-piercing shriek, charging forward and slamming right into the charred section of the fence.
CRASH!
The carbonized wood shattered instantly.
"Fuck!"