Mercenary Systems: The Eternal Life
Chapter 5 Gaining Appreciation
"Heup!"
I intended to surprise the mercenaries who were chasing me, but instead I was the one who was shocked by him. Therefore, I moved reflexively by hitting as hard as I could on the bottom of the man, right about the pair of eggs that became his future. The distance is close, that's why I hit him.
The man froze, while his body was shivering not because of the cold air, I knew that. Even imagining it feels painful, even though I have done it.
"Kugh! K-ka... you...!!!"
He could still make a sound, making me flinch a little, before kicking straight into his chest.
"Gah!"
Looking at the man who was stranded by my kick, I chose to go away. He groaned in pain, but I didn't care.
I ran as hard as I was chased by death. Although I initially thought it was better than being in my comfort zone to the point of discouraging me from making the first move, every single incident I experienced here drove me crazy.
On an empty stomach, I continued to run without thinking about the direction I was heading.
Then, somehow I was able to get out of a strange place that made me stray, I have been by the beach now. It took me a few minutes to break through the dark area of trees after coming out of what I thought was a port city with endless running.
[BEEPING]
I breathe intermittently. Sweat has washed my whole body. Even so, the speck of sound I heard distracted my attention.
[Free yourself (12 Quest Points) - Done!]
[You received 12 Quest Points.]
That way, I have managed to break free from the pursuit of the mercenaries. At least, for the time being, I will be safe from the Slave Merchant's observation even though I'm not very far from the port city where he operates. Just by walking down this coast, I thought I would arrive at the harbor.
"Finally, I can eat."
There are many food options available in the shop. Many foods can fill the stomach, but I prefer a complete package that is special for dinner as much as 10 servings. Of course, it was only rewarded with 1 Quest Point, 10 dinner servings was one unruly package. What can be done, it is more than enough to make my stomach happy.
[You purchased a Dinner Package (1 Quest Point). The goods have been sent to Inventory.]
"In Inventory, yes," I stroked my chin, while the Inventory screen was in front of me. "How do I get it out? Is that enough just-ooh..."
I touched a picture of the item in one of the boxes on the Inventory screen. And in an instant, the item that had just been in the form of an image just appeared out of nowhere to be a real item, while the image on the Inventory screen was still there, just reduced the number of things. Items in Inventory only have Dinner Package, the number is now 9 in the same box.
It seems, Inventory will place the goods into the same box if the goods entered into Inventory are exactly the same or similar. I don't know, I still don't really understand how the exact characteristics of Inventory are.
With just one Dinner Package, the body's need for nutrients has been met. All I need to do after eating is find a safe place to rest.
I chose the opposite direction to the harbor, going away from dangerous places I think is better for now. I thought it was safe to rest by the beach, which of course I would keep my distance from being reached by the tongue of the sea. I could have been carried away while I was sleeping.
About half an hour I walked, I sat facing the sea view. After feeling a little calmer, I realized that the sky was filled with stars. The view of the sea at night is also beautiful. If I had the equipment to save this moment, I would have photographed it. Unfortunately, I arrived in this world only with my clothes that have not been washed so far.
The wind coming from the sea feels warmer than from land. That's pretty good. It's just, it's weird that I don't feel heavy on my eyelids. Will the sun soon be out? I can feel the air change, as night air usually feels more piercing than morning air. It's the same as I feel. Although it was cold, it was not as cold as before midnight.
"The moon's size is big too, yes," I murmured softly as I looked up at the sky. Quietly after a while, I only realized that in the upper right corner of my vision there was some sort of message-shaped icon.
Confused how I opened the message, or I don't know what it was for a moment. I can't touch the message icon, nor can I do anything just by looking at it. How do I open it? I can open it with words. Alright. Although it feels embarrassing, it's just me here.
"System, open the message!"
My mouth formed the letter "O" as soon as the screen containing the message appeared.
[Message from the Mercenary System, to the venerable Mr. Kaellan. Since you have successfully completed a Quest for the first time with a level of difficulty beyond the level for a beginner, you are entitled to receive an appropriate reward as a form of appreciation. You can check for gifts that have just been sent in Inventory. In addition, please choose wisely the following additional gifts.]
[Please select the Talent you are interested in.]
I stared blankly at the system screen in front of me. It was a shocking thing, I did not expect at all that I would get an appreciation gift from the System. Also, it's called the Mercenary System, huh?
In fact, I thought I would spend a lot of Quest Points to buy Talent. But who would have thought, I got the chance to pick Talent for free just because I managed to complete one Quest in the last row. Compared to the Quest Points I earned, the reward of appreciation turned out to be much better. In addition, the additional appreciation gift alone is already this good.
Of course, the reward for choosing Talent for free is very good. Although, the Talents available to choose from do not contain all the Talents available in the Shop. That's still very good.
"Talent, yes. Previously, I wanted to buy the Swordsman Talent. I guess being a swordsman would be pretty cool. But, of course, becoming a swordsman would bring me closer to death when I faced a powerful opponent, or was invaded by many people."
Some Talent caught my attention, especially Talent in terms of battle. Aside from having an interest in Swordsman, I also felt interested in Archer, Paladin, Samurai, and Knight.
If I choose Archer, I will get Archer Mastery as a basic skill in archery. An archer is great at attacking from a distance, especially since it will make me safer when in combat. An archer must be clever in finding a battle location point that is safe from attack to attack the opponent. The first step is the Light Step, allowing an archer to move more easily on even the most difficult terrain.
Given that I focus more Attribute Points on VIT, I have a high match to have Talent as a Paladin or Knight that does focus on endurance.
For a Samurai, one must have a high speed of motion. Like the Swordsman, a Samurai was close to death. Having a speed of movement was a must in order to maximize his sword skills, also increasing the chance to stay alive when a fight occurred.
After all, in a fight, it depends on luck and personal skills.
Even though those with combat Talents were close to death, when in the right hands, they instead dominated the fight. Even death would fear him.
For example, a Samurai facing an archer who was at a safe distance, without a high speed of movement, the fight would be very profitable for the archer. But who knows, the Samurai might be able to deflect the direction of the arrow that leads to him using a mere slender sword to serve as a weapon that attacks its owner.
"Paladin, especially since it has the special effect of fast self-healing when injured, I think it would be great for me."
There is a hidden description of the Paladin.
In this world, the talent to become a Paladin was extremely rare. Of course, the Mercenary System only provided a general explanation of the displayed Talents. After all, I only want to be able to heal quickly when I am injured. After a few previous incidents, I realized that the place where I landed was very dangerous. Being in the best condition at all times is a must.
"alright. I'll be a Paladin!"