The battle against the kobolds just moments ago.
Seeing Rough for the first time there, Jaar had quietly marveled at his exceptional skill.
‘How remarkable. He is sweeping through kobolds with a rusty sword that looks like it could break at any moment.’
It was as though an adult were dealing with children.
‘He is no ordinary man. If someone like him joins the special detachment, our chances of subjugating the Kobold Lord will rise even further.’
Jaar thought very highly of Rough.
“Oh? Is that so? If you praise him so highly, then his skill must be beyond doubt.”
A glint appeared in Clayp’s eyes as he looked at Rough.
Ding!
[Clayp’s Affinity has slightly increased!]
[Upon succeeding in the tutorial quest, the probability of obtaining an outstanding reward slightly increases!]
With a single remark from Jaar—
Clayp did not merely acknowledge Rough’s skill; his Affinity had risen as well.
That was how strong Clayp’s trust in Jaar was.
“I heard about you from Renof the other day. You saved him from a bandit attack, did you not? Would you be willing to help us once again?”
Clayp’s proposal was exactly what Rough had hoped for.
To clear the tutorial quest, he had to defeat the Kobold Lord one way or another.
And to maximize the chances of that happening, Rough himself needed to join Jaar in fighting the boss monster.
For now, that was the best option.
“Since it is dangerous work, I promise you a fitting reward.”
“Sounds good. Let’s do it.”
“It could not have been an easy decision. Thank you!”
[Clayp’s Affinity has slightly increased!]
[Jaar’s Affinity has slightly increased!]
[Renof’s Affinity has slightly increased!]
Clayp concluded the meeting after boosting the officers’ morale.
“Each commander is to ensure that the soldiers are well fed and given sufficient time to rest.”
After the meeting ended, the forward base became busy preparing for the final battle to come.
While everyone else was occupied, Rough sat alone in a corner, lost in thought.
“Participation in the boss monster raid is confirmed, at least. What do I need to prepare from here?”
It was not wise to blindly trust the community, but neither could he dismiss it entirely.
One user had shared his experience and guessed that defeating the second boss would require either good items or excellent control.
‘I have some confidence in my control, but you never know. Then I should at least have good items, but that is impossible right now, too.’
Perhaps because he was still in the tutorial, monsters did not drop items.
The same was true even when he defeated a boss monster.
He had received neither loot nor experience.
‘Still, it feels like there should be some kind of method.’
“Excuse me.”
Someone called out to Rough.
“I would like to speak with you for a moment. Would you spare me some time?”
It was the Named NPC, Jaar.
“What is it?”
“The order is a little backward, but let me introduce myself. I am Jaar, a wandering mercenary.”
Jaar offered his hand.
Seen up close, Jaar was an extraordinarily handsome man.
His faded blond hair and refined features were enough to make him resemble a nobleman.
Rough clasped the offered hand and briefly introduced himself.
“I’m Rough.”
“Pleased to meet you. And thank you for readily accepting my request.”
“But do you know where the Kobold Lord is? How are you planning to attack him?”
“I identified its hideout through scouting some time ago. Kobolds have a strong tendency not to leave their hideouts, so there is a high chance it is still there.”
‘He is thorough.’
Rough murmured in admiration.
“When are we leaving?”
“Nothing has been decided. It is not as though the kobolds attack according to a schedule. Still, since we do not know when it will happen, make sure you are thoroughly prepared.”
“Understood.”
After Jaar left, Rough was alone once more.
All that remained for him was to prepare as fully as possible until that moment came.
“Control and items are impossible at this point. Then what else is there?”
As Rough pondered what means he could use in a fight against the boss monster, he soon found the answer.
“Ah, right! Skills!”
For example, Jaar’s first impression had been incredibly striking.
After all, the moment he appeared, he had swept away three or four kobolds at once with a skill.
“If I gain a skill like that, the boss raid will become much easier. The rest of the game, too.”
He had found a breakthrough, but the method remained distant.
“But how am I supposed to get a skill? Should I go ask... No, they are already dealing with the kobold problem. Taking up his time would be rude.”
Rough slowly shook his head.
There was no helping it. He had to figure it out himself.
“In the RPGs I have played, there were three main ways to acquire skills. First, class advancement. Second, items or rewards like skill books. But both are impossible in the current situation.”
To undergo class advancement, he needed to reach a certain level, but he had no way to gain levels.
Nor did he have any practical means of acquiring a skill book.
“Then I have no choice but to place my hopes on the third method: creating a skill myself.”
Since there was no time, Rough immediately sprang into action.
He decided to imitate, as closely as possible, the way Jaar had looked when he used his skill.
Perhaps he could gain a skill that way.
“It was something like this, right?”
Rough gripped his sword in his right hand and assumed a stance.
He leaped forward, rapidly spinning his body once.
Then he used the centrifugal force to swing his sword in a wide arc.
At first, his movements were clumsy beyond belief.
But after dozens of repetitions, they gradually became more precise.
By the time he had reproduced Jaar’s movements almost perfectly—
[A skill has been created through the repetition of a specific action!]
‘That’s it!’
Rough cheered inwardly.
[Heavy Blow Lv. 1]
[Grade: Lower]
[EXP: 0.00%]
[Active Skill]
[Consumes a certain amount of MP to attack one enemy once, dealing 168% damage.]
It was a fairly basic offensive skill.
Still, it was better than nothing.
Thinking that he might be able to create another skill, Rough made every absurd attempt he could think of.
“Hiya! Hoo-yah—!!”
‘...What is that person doing?’
The embarrassment belonged not to Rough, but to the soldiers.
***
Late at night, after darkness had settled over the land.
After discussion, a small special detachment including Rough and Jaar secretly slipped out through the base’s south gate.
After circling far to the north, they hid themselves in the thick brush and decided to prepare for a possible kobold attack.
‘Tch.’
Rough quietly frowned, apparently displeased.
‘In the end, all I gained was Heavy Blow.’
After obtaining Heavy Blow, he had made a complete fool of himself, but no further skills had appeared.
‘I need to make the most of what I have.’
Having sorted out his thoughts, Rough looked around.
Other than himself and Jaar, who were on the first watch, everyone was asleep, and the area was as quiet as a grave.
Rough’s gaze naturally drifted toward the awake Jaar.
He had not noticed it when he first saw him, but in addition to his sword and shield, Jaar had a greatsword as tall as he was strapped to his back.
Jaar knew better than anyone that carrying such a greatsword would restrict his movements, yet he never took it off.
Intrigued, Rough closely inspected the weapon.
[Someone’s Greatsword Lv. ??]
[Grade: Epic]
‘E-Epic?!’
Rough sucked in a breath.
‘Even the Rare-grade weapon obtained from the pre-registration reward was enough to become a popular community post, and this is Epic? Epic is a grade above Rare, isn’t it?’
With his eyes practically rolling back, Rough hurriedly checked the rest of the item description.
[Classification: Equipment Item]
[Durability: 3,578/7,000]
[Attack Power: 744]
[Description: A greatsword once used by someone.]
That was all the ordinary description revealed.
But beneath it was hidden text visible only through the Advanced Status Window.
[It has been left unmanaged for a long time, and its edge has become severely dull. If this sword regains its original form, its power will be capable of splitting mountains and cleaving seas.]
[Special Option: Upon fulfilling certain conditions, the skill 《True · One Stroke, Two Halves》 may be used.]
‘Why is the description so grandiose? Does this mean he is an NPC with a story behind him?’
As a Named NPC, Jaar apparently held some degree of importance in the world’s lore.
‘Damn. I want it.’
Rough swallowed.
It was not merely because of the weapon.
Jaar himself was one reason as well.
‘If I build a friendly relationship with him, he seems like he could be quite useful... Huh?’
Rough’s head suddenly snapped to one side.
A horrific stench had drifted toward him on the wind.
It was unmistakably the smell that had come from the kobolds.
Jaar sensed the change much as Rough did.
In the darkness, the two spotted something wriggling forward toward the forward base.
It was certainly a group of kobolds.
“Wake up! Wake up!!”
Jaar quickly roused the knights.
“The kobolds are coming. Hurry and notify the base!”
“Understood!”
One knight fired a signal arrow announcing the discovery of the enemy.
Fweeeeeee—
The signal arrow tore through the night sky with a piercing sound.
“The battle will begin soon. While our comrades deal with them, we will move to the Kobold Lord’s hideout.”
Having spotted the signal, the inside of the base soon began bustling as well.
Bwooooooo—!!
Torches ignited everywhere alongside the sound of horns.
Before long, every force in the base, led by Captain Clayp, deployed outside.
They quickly formed ranks and finished preparing to meet the kobolds.
Even then, the black tide did not stop.
Swallowing everything in its path, it advanced steadily toward the base.
The gap between the two forces gradually narrowed.
And at the moment their vanguards were about to collide—
Clayp declared the start of battle.
“Beat the war drums and sound the horns! Do not let your guard down for even a moment—trust yourselves and the comrades beside you! All troops, char—ge!!”
“Waaaaaahhh!!”
The battle began.
“...It has begun. We move.”
Jaar spoke in a low voice.
“No. I do not think that will be necessary.”
Rough stopped Jaar just as he was about to rise.
“Not necessary? What do you mean—”
Jaar, who had been about to question him, shut his mouth again.
He, too, felt that something was wrong.
Then, with an earth-shaking tremor in the distance, a massive figure appeared.
[Warning!]
[Boss Monster, Kobold Lord, has appeared!]
[Pain synchronization is temporarily fixed at 20%. It will reset to its original value when the event ends.]
[You cannot log out in the current field.]
[Leaving the field or forcibly logging out will be considered quest failure.]
Since it was called the Kobold Lord, Rough had expected merely a slightly stronger, larger kobold.
But when he saw the Kobold Lord in person, it was not merely a little larger.
It was nearly three times the size of a powerfully built adult man.
The creature’s appearance—and the strength Rough could feel from it—far surpassed his expectations.
‘Are the people at Necton Up insane? They expect us to kill that?’
In contrast, Jaar’s fighting spirit burned even as he looked directly at the Kobold Lord.
“It has come to us in person. How generous. It has saved us the trouble of looking for it.”
Jaar gripped his sword and shield in each hand.
“Never let it approach the base! If our comrades face it, their morale will collapse in an instant!”
Jaar emerged from the brush first, followed by Rough and the knights.
As the distance to the Kobold Lord closed, Rough could check the boss monster’s Status Window.
[Kobold Lord]
[Lv. 11]
[Title: None]
[Classification: NPC]
[Affiliation: Kobold Faction]
[Disposition: Evil]
[HP: 1500/1500 MP: 360/360]
[Strength: 50 △▽ Agility: 20 △▽]
[Intelligence: 15 △▽ Luck: 15 △▽]
[Total Combat Power: 2,450]
‘This is insane! Its Combat Power is over two thousand?’
Rough was shocked.
Jaar’s Combat Power was around 1,650.
And Rough’s—
Thanks to the title effect, the armor Renof had given him, his skill, and other factors, it had risen slightly, but it had barely exceeded 500.
Together, the two of them only came to a little over 2,000, while the Kobold Lord’s Combat Power was far higher than that.
Judging by the numbers alone, they were at an absolute disadvantage.
His shock lasted only a moment.
Rough quickly regained his composure.
‘It is not so impossible that I could never win, even if I died and came back. Numbers are not everything, and I have my personal trait.’
“I have a plan.”
Rough turned to Jaar, who stood alongside him at the front.
“What is it?”
“Please keep the Lord occupied. In the meantime, I will quickly deal with the knights and the kobolds around us, then join you.”
“A good plan. I will leave it to you.”
“Ssueek! Ssheek!”
The excited Kobold Lord began charging toward the two of them.
“Everyone, prepare for battle.”
Shing, shing.
At Jaar’s whispered command, the knights each drew their weapons.