The Beginning (III)

"Are you ready?"

I look at Bellano and nod my head.

"Yes."

"Good. Remember your mission and good luck."

When he snapped his finger, purple energy surrounded me, and suddenly I appeared in the middle of a grassland.

I look around for a few seconds before seeing a village in the distance. I take out my phone from my pocket and take out the knife from my inventory. I put it on my belt and then walk toward the village in the distance.

The village is surrounded by bamboo and other trees. As I got closer, the more hidden it was. I can see it from the hill I was on, but as I get down the hill, the village is covered by tall bamboo and trees around it.

While walking toward the village, I see a movement from the forest. It was not human. I just know it. Because of my heritage as an Outsider and my Soul Talent perk, I can feel the energy around the creature coming at me from the forest.

I take a deep breath and feel the energy of the outsider dance around me. It was like seeing a thick black miasma released from my body. If I'm not careful, this energy can destroy a human body when one inhales it.

This energy is just like the void but a lot weaker. It will eat anything and return it to nothingness, just like the real void.

I control my energy and coat it around my body like armor. I can feel my body get even stronger from doing this. I release my breath before dashing forward. I thrust my hand at the creature before me and punched it.

I wince a little when I see the head of the boar (That was the creature I sensed earlier) explode. But, lucky for me, it did not leave blood or guts behind and only disappeared after I killed it. What makes it weird is that the boar leaves behind an item.

It was boar leather and a tusk. It looks like it has the same mechanics as the game. Loot will appear when the monster is defeated.

I take the leather and the tusk before putting them inside my inventory. I frown a little and feel a group of monsters approaching me. I control my energy, condense them, and create a hundred needles of void energy.

When I see ten wolves running at me, I release it. I can see the needles pierce their skulls and kill them instantly. I smile a little at the power behind my energy.

This is the power of a Tier-5 character. That's right. I can be considered a Tier-5 powerhouse with all my chosen options.

However, as a Tier-5 character, it does not mean I can fight other Tier-5 enemies. I have the raw power of a Tier-5 person, but I still need to train it to control it better and create even more destructive power.

Not only that, currently, I am just barely considered a Tier-5. If a Tier-5 character is scored five hundred and one to a thousand, then I just reach the five hundred and one score. So I'm just a baby in this tier and still have much to learn.

I shake my head, let my energy take the shape of a hand, then take all the loot on the ground and put them inside my inventory. I hope this will not happen every time I take a step, but I have a feeling it will continue to happen just like this.

=||=

I wipe out the sweat from my forehead as I arrive in front of a village hidden inside the forest. I'm not sweating from the walk I take but rather because of the monster I encounter on my journey. There were a lot of monsters coming at me, but mostly it was a pack of wolves and a drove of boars.

They are not strong, but they have a number. I have beaten a hundred or so monsters on the way here.

When I get closer to the village, I can see a group of people watching me with their weapons drawn. Their weapons are a pitchfork, shovel, and a wood ax.

They are looking at me in shock, fear, and confusion. I can understand the shock and confusion, but why fear? Is this village really a hidden village? The one that does not want to be found?

"Errr, hello?"

"Y-You, how?"

I frown a little before saying.

"Pardon me?"

"H-How do you survive?! There are at least a hundred monsters outside the village."

"Oh, them. Don't worry, I have been killing them when they attack me."

"What?"

I take out my phone and take out all of the loot I got from the monster.

"Here you go. A freshly looted monster."

The old man looked at me with a shocked expression before bowing his head at me.

"Thank you! If not for you, many of us will be dead."

The others follow suit, and suddenly I have twenty or so people bowing at me.

"Please raise your head. I was only in the right place and at the right time."

=||=

After that, the people celebrate and throw a small party for me. I can see people drinking and eating the food that the women of this village prepared.

"Come on! Drink, James! Drink!"

The old man that I know is named Yujin. He is the village chief, and this village is called Yashuna Village. This village is a tourist village where their main industry is tourism. However, it changes when the news of a large number of monsters making a nest near the village.

I smile at him and drink the beer. Hmmm. Not bad! The beer is good.

"Ah, if not for you, we don't know what will happen to us. Thank you, James."

"You have been saying that four times now."

"And I will keep saying it, James. With the knights and other soldiers busy with the Sacred Games in the capital and Stormfist, the monsters that appear around here wreck havoc on our economy."

"How bad is it?"

He looked at me for a second before releasing a tired sigh.

"It was so bad that we are afraid to go out of the village. We are already preparing to die when one of our hunters sees more than a hundred monsters marching toward the village. You already see that we have prepared a boat for the women and children."

Yeah. I see them. I can see a couple dozen of women on the ship ready to go when they see the monster get inside their village. After I told them the news, they got out of the boat with relieved expressions.

"We are lucky that we have a lot of food stored inside of the granary. We can last for another month or two without food from the farmland or from the trade."

I nod my head and decide to do something about it. I need a job because I need money for this mission.

"I can take care of the monster nest for you."

"Really?!"

"Yes. However, it was not free."

"Of course. You don't need to worry about compensation. As long as you can prove them dead, I will make sure you are being paid."

"Good. I will go in… three days. Can you give me a map and mark where the nest is located?"

"Of course. I will make sure to mark the map and tell you the area."

"Good. For now, I need to prepare. Do you know where I can sell the loot I got from the monster?"

It looks like many people are willing to buy the loot I got from the monster. Boar and wolf's meat are especially popular goods for people who have only eaten dried fruit and bread for the past three days.