Chapter:17 Curse Spirit Nest

'I am an idiot.'

As Renko's stomach growled, signaling her hunger, she decided it was not the time to regret her ideocracy but the time to satisfy her appetite. She unwrapped the chocolate bar, revealing the layers of chocolate, caramel, and peanuts. Taking a bite, she savored the mix of flavors and textures. The sweet and nutty taste filled her mouth, and she couldn't help but appreciate the indulgent snack.

[Notification]

[Snickers Bar Consumed

- HP +20

- CP +10]

With a newfound appreciation for the versatile benefits of Snickers bars, Renko continued to enjoy her impromptu mountain snack. In fact, two of them even.

[CP: 87/100]

[CP Regen: 0.5CP/Per Min]

After finishing the Snickers bar, Renko leaned back against the rock, feeling a sense of contentment. The mountainside had proven to be an excellent training ground for her cursed techniques.

[3:45]

With a sigh, she started to create another Flintlock pistol and continued to shoot till she had consumed all the lead ball ammunition.

[Damage: 6.5*43: 279.5]

[Maple Tree(1)

Durability: 0/500]

[Maple Tree(2)

Durability: 363/500]

[Notification]

[Firearms Mastery(1): +43 EXP]

[Marksmanship(1): +430 EXP]

[Level UP]

[Marksmanship(4): 220/400]

Description: Increase precision and accuracy with ranged weapons.

- 13% increase in accuracy when firing a firearm.

- 1.25% increase in chances of landing a critical hit.

- Critical Damage +35%]

[Firearms Mastery(1): 82/100

Description: Allows the user to freely handle firearms. 

- 10% increase in attack damage with weapons categorized as firearms.]

[Inventory]

[1*Flesh-Cleaver(14/15): Grade Four Cursed Tool]

[1*Inferior Cursed Flintlock Pistol(7/10): Semi-Fourth Grade Cursed Tool]

[20*Paper Cartridges: 120 Grains or 7 Grams]

[20*Cloth Patch]

[10*Minie Rounds]

[10*Nessler Rounds]

[20*Snicker Bars]

As the ammunition ran out, Renko took a moment to appreciate the progress she had made in her marksmanship skills.

'Guess I'm getting the hang of this.'

[5:45]

With the sun dipping below the horizon, casting long shadows on the mountainside, Renko decided whether it was time to wrap up her training session... or not.

'Malevolent Arsenal: Create Inferior Cursed Flintlock Musket.'

[Inferior Cursed Flintlock Musket: Semi-Fourth Grade Cursed Tool

Durability: 10/10

- Damage: 15

- Range: 50m]

Well, since she was out of lead ball projectiles, she simply switched to the Minie and Nessler rounds. The procedure for loading them was the same as loading a standard lead ball projectile.

Tear open the paper cartridge, pour 90% of its content down the barrel, and apply the cloth patch to the top of the barrel followed by fitting the Minie projectile just above it. Use the ramrod to make sure the projectiles are snuggly seated at the base of the barrel. Pour the remaining 10% powder into the priming pan, close the frizzen, and cock the hammer. 

'Aim'

Aiming at the second maple tree and prepared to fire.

'Fire' 

*BANG*

[Skill Firearms Mastery Active: +10% Damage]

[Skill Marksmanship Active: Critical Damage! (+35%)]

[Damage: 15+1.5(10%)+5.25(35%)]

[Maple Tree 

Durability: 341.25/500]

[Notification]

[Firearms Mastery(1): +1 EXP]

[Marksmanship(1): +10 EXP]

'Sigh'

"What a pain in the ass!" 

***One Hours Later***

Renko found herself near puking after having continuously shot another twenty rounds. The sun had almost set, and its lingering red light cast an eerie red glow over the serene mountain landscape.

[Firearms Mastery(2): 2/200

Description: Allows the user to freely handle firearms.

- 15% increase in attack damage with weapons categorized as firearms.]

[Marksmanship(5): 140/500]

Description: Increase precision and accuracy with ranged weapons.

- 14% increase in accuracy when firing a firearm.

- 1.5% increase in chances of landing a critical hit.

- Critical Damage +40%]

[CP: 34/100]

[CP Regen: 0.5CP/Per Min]

The musket was... not the most formidable weapon she had ever used but it would do for now. Its function was to provide a means of attack for her and to also improve her marksmanship skills which it was doing. However, the toll on her Curse Energy or Cursed Points (CP) was evident.

'The CP regeneration really needs a boost.'

With a sigh, Renko decided it was time to conclude her training session. The mountain air was now crisp, and the night held an enchanting stillness.

[7:00]

The moon illuminated the path as she descended down the mountain. Although she didn't feel fatigued due to the system, she still felt sick of shooting a gun again and again.

'Guess I will pass by that spot.'

One of the spots she had decided to scout was near the mountain's foot, a cemetery to be exact. It was quite old and completely filled according to the internet. 

What?

You really thought she would walk around the town searching for curse spirits like a complete idiot? 

Hell Nah!

She searched through the internet for cemeteries, haunted houses, abandoned buildings, and all other creepy places.

The moonlight guided her path as she approached the creepy cemetery. According to the internet, this place was first opened in the late 1980s and has been in use till the late 2000s. After that, it became too filled to be in use anymore and was abandoned.

As she reached the cemetery gate, Renko felt a shiver run down her spine. Her instincts were screaming at her to return to her apartment something was not right, it was

.

.

.

cold out here.

Slightly shivering in the cold breeze, she walked through the gate and inside.

[WARNING!]

[You Have Found A Curse Spirit Nest]

[Recommended Level: 1~10]

[Curse Spirits Inside: 51 Semi-Fourth Grade (Mobs/ Graves), 20 Fourth Grade (Elites/Columbarium), 5 Semi-Third Grade (Sub-Bosses/Mausoleum), 1 Third Grade (Boss/Chapel)]

{Note: You can enter and exit as long as you are not engaged in combat or not in the territory of a sub-boss or boss.}

[Do You Wish To Enter 'Yūrei Yama Cemetery']

[YES] [NO]

"Ghost Mountain Cemetery? Couldn't they have chosen a more creepier name than that?"

Still, she felt there was no harm in trying it out. Except maybe that,

[CP: 65/100]

She was kinda running low on Curse Energy, not to mention she still needed to create another cursed bayonet.

'Meh, there's always the Snickers bar.'

[Inventory]

[15*Snickers Bar]

Bringing her hands together in a praying gesture, she muttered the words she had grown accustomed to saying while using her technique.

"Malevolent Arsenal: Inferior Cursed Bayonet"

A dim, eerie blue glow enveloped her hands. The energy coalesced, shaping itself into the form of a new cursed tool—the Inferior Cursed Bayonet. With a swift motion, she caught the newly created bayonet before it fell to the ground.

[Inferior Cursed Bayonet: Semi-Fourth Grade Cursed Tool

Durability: 5/5

- Damage: 12]

[CP: 35/100]

'Sigh, no need to remind me.'

As soon as she had safely placed the bayonet back into the inventory, she began to pull out and much on the Snickers bars.

[HP+20] [CP+10]

.

.

2* [HP+20] [CP+10]

.

.

.

4*[HP+20] [CP+10]

[CP: 100/100]

'Well, what do you, you can't stack extra curse energy. Pity.' 

With a tired look in her eyes, Renko entered the cemetery. The moonlight cast elongated shadows across the tombstones, creating an otherworldly atmosphere. The eerie silence hung in the air as she ventured further into the burial ground.

[Inside 'Yūrei Yama Cemetery']

The graveyard stretched out before her, and Renko could sense a multitude of unnatural presence. It seems she could passively sense their presence without using a technique or they were simply containing their presence inside the graveyard. 

'Who knows?'

Renko slowly moved through the rows of tombstones, keeping an eye out for any signs of a cursed spirit. The chilling wind was becoming more and more unbearable, and sneaking around was no longer a habit, causing even more problems for her.

Clutching the new bayonet in her hand, she advanced deeper into the cemetery. The gravel under her feet crunched and the breaking of branches was a pain in the ass to conceal. Suddenly, she felt a shiver run down her spine, not at all dangerous but a simple sign that something was not right.

An all-too-familiar buzz entered her ears, she crouched down behind a particularly large tombstone and glanced at the source of all the buzzing noise. Sure enough, a bug-like curse spirit was spinning around a half-covered grave with a wooden headstone.

'Man, whoever's buried there sure must be hated quite a bit. Anyway,

'Observe'

[Fly-Head: Lv.2

HP: 10/10

CP: 10/10]

"Huh?"

So these creatures were called fly-heads?

'Should have kept a Musket in hands.'

Now she was regretting not keeping one at hand, these bugs were a bunch of one-shots with a musket.

'Guess I'll have to do it the old-fashioned way.'

Gripping the Inferior Cursed Bayonet, she prepared to make her move. The moonlight illuminated the eerie graveyard.

'Closer...'

Renko waited for the Fly-Head curse spirit to hover close enough to the tombstone. The buzzing sound grew louder as it approached.

'Closer...'

Now it was merely a meter or two away from her.

'Closer still...'

The buzzing intensified as the flyhead appeared directly in front of the tombstone she was hiding behind,

'And... Strike!'

With a swift and precise motion, she lunged forward, aiming to strike the Fly-Head curse spirit with the bayonet. The blade cut through the air, but the nimble curse spirit managed to evade the attack, zigzagging unpredictably.

"Persistent little bug, aren't you?"

Renko adjusted her stance, ready for another attempt. The Fly-Head continued its erratic movements, making it a challenging target.

'Come on...'

The bastard was making it harder and harder to hit, not to mention the fact that it was preparing to attack. She patiently waited for the right moment, Waiting as the creature neared to attack her.

Just as it reached arm's length, Renko seized the opportunity and thrust the bayonet with precision.

[Damage: 12+1.2(10%)]

The bayonet pierced right through the Fly-Head's maw, dissipating it into a faint, dark mist. Renko stood up, sighing with a mix of satisfaction and frustration.

[Curse Spirit: Fly-Head: Exorcised]

[+10 EXP]

[Dropped Items:

- $5 or ¥600

- 2*Fly-head Wings]

[Knife Mastery: +5 EXP]

[Knife Mastery(2): 0/200]

- 15% increase in attack damage with weapons categorized as knives.]

[Innate Technique: Malevolent Arsenal(1): +5]

[Inferior Cursed Bayonet

Durability: 4.5/5(-0.5)]

'Well, that was a bit more trouble than expected.'

Indeed, she had never expected such a weak curse spirit to be such a problem not to mention a fly-head was the weakest spirit in the cemetery.

'And what's with the drops?'

*Buzz* *Buzz* *Buzz*

'Crap, gotta move.'