The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 48

48.

The message popped up like a ghost the moment I lowered my fist.

“Why, Master?”

It was a message that didn’t match Jihad’s innocent and pure demeanor at all.

‘Did I see that wrong?’ Dohyun wondered.

He looked so peaceful, you could believe his loyalty had genuinely increased.

Even after rubbing his eyes, thinking he might have misread it, the message remained the same.

Dohyun, growing suspicious, raised his fist again.

*Twitch.*

[Loyalty increases by +1.]

Jihad’s body twitched for a moment, and his loyalty increased again.

*Swish.*

[Loyalty decreases by -1.]

And as soon as he lowered it, his loyalty dropped like a ghost.

In this absurd situation, something involuntarily burst out of Dohyun’s throat.

“Is this kid crazy…?”

“M, Master. I’ll go pick up the items!”

Jihad, sensing something was amiss, hurriedly went to gather the dropped items, and the bizarre situation ended.

His hasty escape was ridiculous, but the loyalty increase that followed, accompanied by a cheerful notification, was even more so.

Dohyun, unable to suppress his astonishment, let out a hollow laugh.

‘Is this the Opportunist trait in action?’

The Guardian’s trait was truly legendary in many ways, he had to admit.

‘So that’s why he gave up on backstabbing after being hit hundreds of times…’

In any case, his loyalty had increased by 1, and he was being obedient, so Dohyun decided to move on and sighed.

‘Well, he listens well, so whatever.’

As with most RPGs, God of Seoul required players to pick up items directly.

Special or contribution rewards were automatically 지급되는 [paid out] as exceptions, but usually, you had to collect them yourself.

In a party, contribution points were distributed, and then items were picked up in turn…

‘I was wondering if there was a pet function, but this is even better.’

It was all for the sake of realism, but honestly, it was a bit annoying to have to pick everything up.

In that context, having a great pet to do it for him was a welcome relief. And Jihad wasn’t just a pet in name; he was truly great.

*Swish- Shoosh-.*

[Trait Quick Hands is activated.]

[Acquired Giant Spider’s Fang.]

[Acquired Forest Red Goblin Leather.]

…

“…?”

True to the name ‘Quick Hands,’ Jihad collected 잡템 [miscellaneous items] at an incredible speed.

Maybe it was because he was small, but watching him move nimbly and sweep everything away, Dohyun understood why goblins were often portrayed as thieves in fantasy stories.

‘Maybe he’s more useful than I initially thought?’

It was the moment Dohyun realized he had acquired a fantastic automatic looting pet.

* * *

The efficiency of the automatic pet was beyond Dohyun’s wildest expectations.

*Swish-.*

[Defeated Forest Blue Goblin.]

“Jihad.”

“Yes!”

*Shoosh-.*

[Trait Quick Hands is activated.]

[Acquired Forest Blue Goblin Leather.]

All Dohyun had to do was kill the monster and call Jihad, and he would pick up the item. Dohyun no longer had to worry about 잡템 [miscellaneous items] and could focus solely on hunting.

Picking up items all at once only happened once or twice, but if it was repeated constantly, it took up a lot of time.

But if he threw them away, they would add up to a decent amount of money… It was a painful loss.

[Defeated Forest Red Goblin.]

[Defeated Giant Centipede.]

*Shoosh- Swish-.*

[Acquired Giant Centipede Fragment.]

[Acquired Forest Red Goblin Claw.]

But what about now?

Without such worries, Dohyun could just go forward and blow up monsters, and Jihad would follow, picking up the loot faster than anyone else.

Considering Dohyun’s hunting speed, it was an insane collection rate.

“Hey, tell me honestly. Aren’t you a thief, not a shaman?”

“To compare me to such a lowly thief! Isn’t that too much, Master!”

“No, it doesn’t make sense. How can your hands be so fast?”

“Cough, cough… I am a little fast. I don’t think there’s anyone faster than me in casting spells, even among shamans?”

Jihad puffed out his chest and made a sound, as if he was happy with the compliment. Normally, it would have been irritating, but this time, Dohyun 인정 [acknowledged] it.

Because he had discovered Jihad’s unexpected talent.

‘Was Quick Hands a more amazing trait than I thought?’

It seemed to be a trait that not only sped up magic casting but also sped up everything related to hands.

At this level, there would be considerable demand for it.

Anyway, thanks to him, Dohyun was able to continue hunting easily, but his level still didn’t rise.

‘How come it doesn’t go up at all? It’s not increasing as much as I thought.’

There were no more hunting quests that gave a lot of experience now.

If he did 노가다 [grinding] in the village, it seemed like it would be the same, and if he hunted like this, he didn’t know how many hours it would take.

There were still 2 levels left until graduation level, which was an unexpected obstacle.

It wasn’t for nothing that there was a joke that the experience bar doubles from level 20.

“Sigh… It would be nice to catch a boss. The elite monster’s respawn time hasn’t come yet…”

The field boss was not something he could catch yet…

It was also cumbersome and ambiguous to go to a party dungeon, so there was nothing like an elite monster at times like this.

Just like elite monsters appeared in dungeons from time to time, elite monsters appeared in field hunting grounds other than bosses.

He wouldn’t level up just by catching one, but it was better than catching a few groups of normal monsters, so it was perfect to think of it as a bonus experience.

However, the problem was that they only appeared in certain areas at certain times.

‘In the case of the western forest, it was usually 12:00, 18:00, and 21:00.’

Only three times a day.

There were many users, but respawn only happened three times, so having a chance to hunt was like picking a star from the sky.

The rewards were not great, but the experience was good, but as much as they were honey monsters, there were so many users who wanted to hunt them that they were everywhere.

‘There are 2 levels left… I have no choice but to find a dungeon.’

In Raven, Dohyun only met villains when he met people…

As Dohyun, who had to hide that he was All Master, he didn’t want to form a party if possible, but at this rate, it seemed like it would take all day.

It was when the scales were tilting towards compromising with reality.

“Huh? Elite monster? Are you talking about the elite guys, Master?”

Dohyun came out of his thoughts at Jihad’s sudden voice.

‘I heard he had been hiding for hundreds of years.’

Still, he’s from a boss, so he knows something about elite monsters. It’s amazing, but it was plausible enough, so he didn’t feel much.

“That’s right. It’s harder to see than a star right now, though.”

So he was going to answer appropriately and move on.

If it wasn’t for the words that followed.

“I know where that guy is?”

“…What?”

Dohyun’s gaze, which had been drifting, snapped back.

Jihad, who met his eyes, was tilting his head as if he genuinely didn’t understand.

“Aren’t you talking about the tribe’s warriors? Why can’t you find them? Except for the exiled ones, they’re always still.”

“…Exiled? Still?”

“Yes. Otherwise, they would never leave their tribe.”

“Wait a minute.”

…If that’s true.

No, before that, how does that guy know that?

To that question, Jihad shrugged his shoulders with a cool look.

“Of course, I know, Master. I was the ruler of this forest; how can there be anything in the forest that I don’t know? Unless they moved the entire territory, they’ll be there.”

“Oh my god.”

“Huh?”

“You… You were more capable than I thought?”

“Ahem! You’re finally recognizing me, Master. Should I take you there right now if you want?”

Dohyun nodded fiercely.

It was the first time that guy looked genuinely cool.

* * *

Forest Goblin Warrior.

It is an elite monster that every user living in Raven knows about.

He is also a warrior from the same stock as the ‘Mutant Goblin Warrior’ that Dohyun had experienced terribly in Arde, and everyone hopes to encounter him.

It’s because of the experience, but more than that, it’s because of the reward.

‘Because he drops a downgraded Warrior set.’

Compared to the Mutant Goblin Warrior set, the options and grade are lacking, but the level limit is higher, so items with decent performance come out.

The effect is not only applied to goblins, but considering the next city, it can be said to be a 준졸업템 [almost end-game item].

Even the guys who are hard to meet have a fairly high drop rate.

It’s not for nothing that the people lining up are packed as soon as the time for the guys to respawn comes.

However, there was one strange characteristic of the Forest Goblin Warrior that respawns.

[Forest Red Goblin Warrior]

-Title: Elite Monster

-Type: Goblin

-Trait: Warrior

-Description: A great goblin warrior from the Red tribe.

Only the greatest warriors in the tribe can have the title of warrior. It is characterized by excellent greatsword skills and violence.

[Forest Blue Goblin Warrior]

-Title: Elite Monster

-Type: Goblin

-Trait: Warrior

-Description: A great goblin warrior from the Blue tribe.

Only the greatest warriors in the tribe can have the title of warrior. It is characterized by excellent medium sword skills and high stamina.

Red tribe warrior or Blue tribe warrior.

This is determined randomly.

Without any special rules, one of the two warriors appears randomly.

Sometimes, two of them appear at the same time.

“복불복 [gamble of luck].”

Because of this, users call it 복불복 [gamble of luck].

Usually, in this characteristic place where parties are formed, the advantage and disadvantage differ depending on the characteristics of the Red Goblin Warrior and the Blue Goblin Warrior, so it was an adjective attached in the sense of leaving it to luck.

In the case of the Blue Goblin Warrior, high damage was required because HP and recovery speed were very fast, and in the case of the Red Goblin Warrior, the role of a tanker who would reliably take on aggro was necessary.

Therefore, users who go out to hunt warriors tend to form the most common and textbook basic party members.

‘If you have a tank, dealer, and healer, it’s okay no matter what comes out.’

Even if you can’t attack in the shortest time, you’re creating a composition that doesn’t lose money.

That way, you can easily catch both of them even if they both come out.

‘There are guys who tell their fortune with that 복불복 [gamble of luck], right?’

If you guess whether it’s blue or red, the day goes well, and if you guess that two of them are coming out, it’s said that your luck bursts out that day?

Due to the characteristics of the community with many crazy guys, strange news is heard from time to time, but that was really something that only a small number of users did.

Dohyun had done similar things, but not those things.

“How is it, Master. Are those the guys?”

“Oh, that’s right.”

Dohyun swallowed hard, leaving behind Jihad, who was proud.

‘Jackpot.’

He answered coolly for the dignity of the master, but he was sincerely surprised.

He had no choice but to be.

*Keereuk! Keereureuk!*

*Kureuk! Kereuk!*

‘How many are there?’

Unlike what Dohyun thought, that he knew the location of one, the warriors were gathered in a group.

Just the number visible from afar was five.