Chapter 31: Skill Tree 1
I left the four with broken ankles behind and ran through the plains, eventually making my way out of the tower.
My body felt strangely rejuvenated, but it must be my imagination. There's no way I'd feel better after beating up smelly old men.
I don't have that kind of taste.
After that, everything went smoothly.
The incident wrapped up so quickly that I felt sorry for Han Se-ah: we didn't even need to go to the guards.
With broken ankles, they were squirming at the entrance of the tower when patrolling guards approached.
"Ah, Roland! We owe you from the last incident. But who are these guys?"
"They're bandits who killed adventurers in the tower. They said they have bounties on their heads."
"Ah, I see! We'll confirm the bounties and send them to the guild."
There should've been tedious procedures.
After all, it's a violent incident that is related to the city.
However, all of that was neatly handled by the guards' goodwill.
If the Horned Wolf incident didn't get resolved quickly, the guards would naturally take the blame.
They're the organization responsible for maintaining security within the city, and I've saved them from the wrath of their superiors.
I was also hot talk among the nobility, so there was more protection around me.
My reputation as an adventurer also made it easy for them to overlook the rights of mere bandits.
[Player Han Se-ah has chosen the first skill for 6 Paladin Roland]
[First Skill: "Shield Mastery" is activated]
...But what is this?
Han Se-ah choosing my skill?
What does that mean?
After handing over the bandits, I took a detour into an alley to check the forum.
The chat and the forum were in chaos after she revealed my skills to the viewers and let them choose.
The viewers were discussing my skills, which even I hadn't known about.
There was already a document similar to a wiki page created about it.
The passive skill that activated on the day I encountered the horned wolf was called "Indomitable Knight."
Its effects were twofold: it reduced all damage taken by 50% without any conditions, and it reflected damage to nearby enemies based on my health and defense.
"...Didn't I spend 850,000 won for one draw? It was worth it."
No wonder the expected value for a single draw was 1 million won.
I couldn't help but remember my trembling fingers as I pressed the gacha button ten years ago.
Were the developers of Heroines Chronicle blinded by money or did they have terrible balancing skills?
Probably both.
The next skill Han Se-ah chose was my first skill, "Shield Mastery."
From the name alone, it seems like a passive skill, but there's a friendly note explaining that it's an active skill.
The effect states that when the skill is used, all attacks are countered for a short duration.
...How does that work?
What does it mean to counter all attacks?
It probably counters ranged attacks too
Then it's a seriously overpowered skill
Han Se-ah got criticized because his other skills were too good as well
For real, no matter what she picked, she would have been criticized
Just looking at the skill list makes me cry; is this really a 6?
I didn't learn it from anyone; I just mastered shield techniques through trial and error.
What can I do about it?
Dozens of comments echoed my doubts.
Of course, until I met Han Se-ah, I didn't have any skills like counterattacks or reflecting damage.
Whether a goblin threw a stone at me or a dragon spewed its breath, all I could do was block and endure.
I had no idea how to counter ranged attacks with a shield.
After reading all the relevant information, I left the alleyway and slowly headed toward the guild.
I found information about my skill, and while killing time, I browsed popular posts.
Many people were chattering about the skills Han Se-ah had given up to choose her shield mastery.
There were people arguing about whether "Intimidating Roar," which Han Se-ah had ignored, was an area debuff or an area taunt.
There were also people fighting over whether or not a self-healing skill was needed when a priest would join the party.
It's probably a parallel world: the passion for gaming among Koreans remains the same.
"Ah, you're back... What happened to those thugs?"
"The guards at the tower entrance took them away immediately."
"I see, they were patrolling earlier."
I arrived at the guild while reading the forum.
Han Se-ah greeted me with an indifferent expression, either because she had thick skin or a strong spirit.
The forum and chat were in chaos due to the skills she had given up, but she seems unaffected by it all.
Although the chat mod was actively banning insults and criticism, I would have thought her feelings would be hurt.
But she appeared unfazed, which I found quite impressive for a streamer.
"The guards agreed to sort out the bounty and send it to the guild. With the amount we'll get, which is equal to the equipment of intermediate adventurers, both of you can easily buy new gear."
"Intermediate gear already?"
At my words, Grace and Han Se-ah were both visibly surprised.
It made sense since I had been covering food and lodging expenses, so the money earned from hunting Horned Wolves had been saved entirely.
We were earning a few silver coins a day, but the only expenses were Grace's arrow purchases and the cost of the Horned Wolf lure Han Se-ah created.
As a result, our party's savings were incomparable to ordinary parties.
If we sold the byproducts of the Full Moon Wolves, both of them could afford to fully equip themselves with intermediate gear.
'But the Full Moon Wolves won't bring in that much money.'
I had told Grace that the Full Moon Wolf's hide was worth tens of gold coins, close to a hundred gold, but I doubted we would actually get that amount.
It seemed problematic from a game balance perspective.
If it were another player instead of Han Se-ah, a day's worth of income would be just one or two silver coins from field grinding.
A thousand times that amount from the first boss drop?
In reality, it would be like finding a winning lottery ticket on the street.
Within the game, it would shatter the balance.
Perhaps we would only receive magic stones, and those stones would open a gate for direct access to the 10th floor.
"Why were you so curious about the guards?"
"No, sis. I was only a bit curious, but it's fine."
"There's no need to be shy. If you're curious, go and see for yourself. It's not like the guards' area is off-limits."
Caught up in my happy delusions about game balancing and shortcuts, I had missed the sudden progression of their conversation.
The sun was still high in the sky, too early for dinner and goodbyes.
We could make up for a day's worth of income with the bounty, but there was no way to fill Han Se-ah's lack of tower content for her stream.
Han Se-ah's eyes sparkled as she looked at me, seemingly calmed by Grace's soothing words.
She probably thought it was inappropriate to go without a purpose since it was a place responsible for maintaining security, like a police station.
Grace sent me a pleading glance from Han Se-ah's side.
"If we tell them we need to verify something with the bandits we captured earlier, they should let us in."
"What do we need to verify?"
"Well, we can make up a reason. Ellis, we caught some mid-level adventurers who were committing robbery. Can you help us verify their badges?"
Not yet sunset, our party was occupying the table, and Ellis, who seemed to be interested, frowned slightly.
Of course, due to her beautiful appearance, she looked cute rather than fierce, but I quickly added to avoid any backlash.
"I'll handle everything related to the guards. In addition to the compensation documents from last time, I'll buy a slice of cake from the cake shop."
"You're not just buying for me, right?"
"Of course not. I'll buy for the other receptionists too."
As soon as I promised a certain reward, she gave a beaming smile and took the adventurer's badge I had brought out.
Seeing her, Han Se-ah quietly approached me and whispered.
It seemed strange to her that the receptionist of the Adventurer's Guild was getting something out of every transaction.
"Don't we have to verify the badges if we catch a robber?"
"No. The adventurer's badge is just for show, aside from its use in finding the exit. Even if we say we're checking, there's no way to prove whether it's their badge or not."
"Then what are they verifying?"
"Since they heard our conversation, they're providing us with an excuse to enter the guards' headquarters. It doesn't mean much, but they can at least provide us with an official document."
Ellis could stamp the document with the receptionist's seal and write an opinion like, "This badge is suspected to be stolen."
After all, the bandits were going to be executed or imprisoned anyway, so a minor pretext would be enough for a brief visit.
Why would bandits be stealing within the tower if they had backing?
The guards would be itching to execute them, and I had no interest in listening to their sob stories.
'I should swing by the guards' headquarters, deliver the dessert, and practice my skills early.'
My schedule was free, so I planned to practice my skills as I received a document from Ellis.
The receptionists inside the office, visible through the open door, all had sweet smiles full of longing for the dessert.
I had asked Ellis for so many favors that the equation "Roland asks for something = Roland buys snacks" seemed to have been engraved in their minds.
Still, all the receptionists inside the office were beautiful women, the faces of the guild.
No man would dislike being kindly treated by a beauty.
After exchanging a quick glance through the door, I opened the guild's door and stepped outside.
"Now, don't break the door!"
"I won't, the repair costs are too scary!"
After responding to Ellis's playful comment, the two girls, Han Se-ah and Grace, subtly stuck close to me.
Han Se-ah seemed curious about something, and Grace watched her with an amused expression.
To Grace, Han Se-ah probably looked like a child begging to see the guards.
The quiet streets still basked in daylight.
It was the time when adventurers would be busy exploring the tower, so the streets were empty.
Walking down the empty street, Han Se-ah began to speak.
"Although I asked for a favor, is it okay for Ellis to just create documents like that?"
She appeared to be more comfortable with casual speech now.
Her eyes darted around, seemingly worried about the guild documents in my possession.
After all, forging official documents is a criminal act punishable by imprisonment in modern society.
However, this world was based on a medieval fantasy setting from a mobile game with broken balance.
"Most documents aren't an issue unless they're really strange."
The guild is an organization formed by merchants, craftsmen, and others for profit in free cities without lords.
In other words, the Adventurer's Guild is a group of adventurers who have come together for mutual benefit.
As a result, the guild is not a dictatorship under a single person's control.
The city's power is divided among various guilds, temples, and nobles, and the Adventurer's Guild is similarly distributed among the guild master and other key figures.
"Ellis is one of them. Receptionists who were hired for their looks often receive training and support for other tasks. She has the most seniority among them, so her authority within the guild is quite substantial."
The executives of the Adventurer's Guild include retired famous adventurers, accountants, and the older sister of the receptionists, Ellis.
As a group formed for profit, their internal voices cannot be ignored.
"If you become close with her, you'll benefit greatly. She tends to... overly pamper beautiful people."
All the receptionists are beauties, and Ellis is incredibly kind to them.
Perhaps it's due to her kindness and incredible social skills that the guild's influence has reached this level.
Grace and Han Se-ah nodded with stunned expressions after hearing my explanation.
Their image of Ellis was probably closer to a persistent saleswoman who kept asking if they had any intention of becoming a receptionist.
***
4/4! Released all the chappies so I can break the site a little :p getting ads is much more complicated than I thought, I have to shift everything around and it's breaking things. Hopefully it's all good after the weekend.
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