A Reward Worth The Troubles (2)

The crowd goes wherever the special force goes. Not to support them or cheer them up, but to rebuke them. And Zaen couldn't blame them. The special force did everything other than what they were supposed to do. The media was, thankfully, unbiased in the situation despite pressure from the government. Much to the Special force's dismay.

The mysterious Special force was a centre of attraction for these media houses, yet not much was known about them, other than they were supposed to investigate the mist.

Even now, a huge crowd of reporters and civilians had gathered around the park. They were surprised to find the special force working for once, rather than causing unnecessary problems for the civilians. Hidden within the crowd was Zaen.

The mask of secrecy was still out of durability so he couldn't go inside the park and check what business did the force had in the park. So he decided to observe the situation from afar. He wasn't interested in risking his life to get some information. Also, since the park wasn't a location where Camouflaged ghouls were, Zaen didn't bother going in.

"Aeron, any clues yet?" Zaen whispered into the concealed microphone.

"Nope. They somehow found me chilling in their communication grid and well... I've been locked out now. But I'm trying-"

"Don't worry about it, I can't do much here either way." Zaen said as he turned around to leave, "Since they are busy here, I guess this is the perfect opportunity to go and complete the daily quest first."

"Good idea. So where to next?"

"The industrial zone, Ziga."

In the northernmost region of Lizan, was the industrial zone called Ziga. It was the source of earning for most of the lower-class people, especially the ones living in the slums. If Zaen had to use a few words to describe the region, he'd say it was an overcrowded mass of land which had been forced to bend according to mankind's wishes. The skies were filled with dark grey clouds of smoke and pollution from the factories, allowing little to no sunlight to penetrate the clouds. Although the technological advancements had the pollution somewhat under control, the increased production of goods more or less negated any effect the pollution control methods had.

In short, between the crowd and little to no sunlight, Ziga was the perfect place for a ghoul to hide. Especially if it was a Camouflaged ghoul. When Zaen closed the first rift, the Camouflaged ghoul from the slum disappeared as well and for some reason, only two ghouls were remaining for him to hunt. Though he wasn't going to complain about the added bonus.

However, he had to be careful from now onwards. There were still 9 open rifts and he had no idea about their location. He might as well find another rift in Ziga, thus he needed to be prepared for the worst. However, he found it unlikely that a rift would be located in the industrial zone. Because, unlike the slums, the industrial zones were crucial to the government for revenue generation and hence were important.

If something like a rift was to open there, workers would go missing. Well, not missing but dead. This would lead to an investigation which would lead to the discovery of the ghouls. Soon entire battalions of military personnel would be deployed within moments. Zaen seriously doubted that even the Special force could stay silent if that were to happen. Still, according to his experience so far, human logic didn't apply when it came to ghouls.

"Maybe I should claim the rewards from the emergency quest first," Zaen mumbled before heading towards an isolated alley.

Before opening the weapon box, Zaen took out the skill stone which the Tainted ghoul left behind as an item drop.

[You've learned the ability: Stunner (Level 1)]

Next, he took out the weapon box he got from completing the mission and opened it. He didn't know what kind of weapon he'll obtain from the box, but he hoped it would be a dagger so that he could finally put Dual Wielding ability to use. And heavens answered his prayers, but that wasn't all.

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Item: Bloodlust Dagger (Stage1)

Description: This long double-edged Dagger was forged from the remains of the Primal creature who once ruled over the darkness with an iron fist. A perfect choice if you wish to stab and slash your enemies to death with ruthless speed and precision. This weapon is used by champions and proven fighters. None deserve this weapon more than the greatest fighters of all.

Type: Weapon

Damage: 400/hit

Attack speed: 1.3/second

DPS: 520

Rarity: Epic

Durability: 15000/15000

Souls Gathered: 0/500

Agility: +20

Effect(s):

• Epic weapons have increased durability. The rate of wearing is also slowed.

• Grants the user a passive skill <Lifesteal>

Lifesteal: Dealing damage to a target recovers 30% of the damage dealt as HP to the user. Healing increases to 50% in case of a critical hit. Has a cooldown period of 3 seconds.

• Grants the user a passive skill <Adversary of the Undead>.

Adversary of the Undead: The dagger gathers the souls of killed monsters. Upon gathering enough souls, the dagger evolves into the next stage. The stats of the dagger are improved and new abilities/skills are unlocked.

• Grants the user a passive skill <???>. (Proceed to stage 2 to unlock)

• Grants the user an active skill <???>. (Proceed to stage 3 to unlock)

• Grants the user a passive skill <???>. (Proceed to stage 4 to unlock)

• Grants the user an active skill <???>. (Proceed to stage 5 to unlock)

User must fulfil the following conditions to equip the weapon:

• Must have more than 150 stamina points. (Fulfilled)

• Must have the title <Frenzied's Slayer> (Fulfilled)

The user has fulfilled the stated conditions and can wield Bloodlust Dagger.

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"Is this... Jackpot?"

Zaen was a bit surprised. He had the dagger in his hands yet he couldn't believe the stats it had. A weapon that evolves by killing monsters? The potential of the weapon was endless. It was thanks to his passive ability, Tough love, that he was able to wield the dagger or else he'd have to find a way to increase his stamina first.

The crimson dagger reflected the sunrays directly at Zaen's face. He didn't know why, but holding the dagger in his hands made him feel like he was... complete. It was as if something had been missing his entire life, yet he didn't even know about it.

"Time to test how good it actually is."