【Side Quest 1: Kill the slimes east of Gulf Town.】
【Reward: Random-Colored Bronze Chest x1. 30% off your next transaction with a Kingdom Merchant.】
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"Treasure chests, and a merchant... The rewards are pretty generous."
Wu Shuang muttered to himself.
Before, he probably would have accepted it. Not only were the rewards good, but the target was a slime, the bottom tier of monsters in a fantasy world.
But now... after witnessing the "grand and imposing stature" of a "goblin," he no longer believed slimes would be weaklings.
This was a blatant trap. Blindly taking the quest would likely result in a major disaster—that was probably how many Heroes had died.
Therefore, Wu Shuang had no intention of accepting any quests involving combat—including killing chickens. He was a weakling with minus-one combat power, so it was completely normal for him to lose to a rooster. There was no need to feel ashamed!
【Side Quest 2: Kill...】
The moment Wu Shuang saw the word "kill," he skipped straight to quest three.
【Side Quest 3: Dig up three graveyards and take the treasure within.】
【Reward: Kingdom Gold Coin x50】
【Hero Insight ⑨: Rather than letting these treasures sleep underground forever, it is far better to make them shine in your own hands! This, too, is for the Kingdom!】
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"Is... is this something a Hero is supposed to do?"
Wu Shuang fell silent for a few seconds, briefly reflecting on his "Hero experience," which mostly consisted of video game scenes...
He seemed to... actually have done this before, and more than once.
These actions could all be summarized as classic Hero behavior.
The system seemed to treat this world like a game while he played the role of a Hero, so it was no surprise such quests existed.
However, here came the problem.
Side quests refreshed monthly, and Heroes had one chance per week to refresh a quest. Should he accept this quest?
Once accepted, the quest would be locked in place and could not be refreshed until it was completed or until the next month rolled around, permanently occupying a quest slot in the meantime.
"Should I accept it or not...?"
After agonizing for a few seconds, Wu Shuang chose to accept it. Refreshing two quests wouldn't leave him completely stuck.
Failing to refresh a doable side quest—that would be a true dead end!
He decisively accepted the quest to rob three graves, then pressed refresh.
With good luck, this time he got another quest unrelated to killing. Its content was...
【Side Quest 2: Sneak into a villager's house, take at least 10 items of value, and bring them back to the hideout without being detected by anyone inside.】
【Reward: Kingdom Gold Coin x50】
【Hero Insight ⑩: There are two types of stealth: one is sneaky, and the other is brazen. The common point is that neither leaves any witnesses.】
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"This system really treats villagers like video game NPCs."
"Though the villagers here... are very likely mutated monsters anyway, so it's pretty much the same."
Wu Shuang accepted the quest. Since he held the key to Paul's cellar and already planned to head there, the quest aligned perfectly, allowing him to accomplish both goals in one trip.
Besides, Paul was dead, so his house was very likely empty. He could take things out in broad daylight. This quest was practically a freebie—there was no reason not to take it.
With two out of the three side quests locked in, Wu Shuang prepared to act. He had explored as much as he could for now.
The handbook had other features, but they needed to be unlocked step by step. For example, the chat room required completing at least one side quest before it opened, and the trading market would unlock at the same time.
Currently, these interfaces were all grayed out, so he could only try them later.
Wu Shuang noted a few objectives inside the handbook to remind himself not to forget.
1. Confirm the surrounding environment and geographic location to ensure personal safety. Safety comes first.
2. Find Paul's house. The handbook map should help.
3. Try to complete Side Quest 2 and gather supplies—preferably a shovel, followed by food and fresh water.
4. Look for a graveyard.
"Alright, that's everything. Time to eat first. Hopefully, this won't be my last meal..."
Wu Shuang gave a bitter smile. In truth, he had no confidence at all, but to survive, he had no choice but to brace himself and press on.
Using the relatively clean short sword, he sliced off a small section of black bread, cut it into pieces, soaked them in water, and ate them. Whenever he lost his appetite, he nibbled on the extremely salty, fishy dried fish, forcing himself to consume a bit.
Once he felt somewhat full, he sat for another half hour, checked the system time on the handbook, and prepared to move out.
It was right around noon. The light was ample, and the mist had cleared up considerably compared to early morning, making movement easier.
He watched from the window for a while first. Confirming there were no issues, he turned his gaze to the trapdoor on the floor, which pulled upward and served as the attic's sole entrance and exit.
He had pulled it open earlier to check: below was a spacious corridor, completely empty, with no apparent danger.
"Time to move!"
Wu Shuang bolstered his confidence. Fully prepared, he brought both the short sword and the axe, securing them on his left and right sides. He was using the belt taken from his Hero predecessor; lacking preparation of his own, he had no choice but to borrow it.
Next was a military rucksack capable of holding a decent amount of items. It was somewhat dirty, stained with unknown grime, but it could store plenty of things, making it another necessity.
He pulled open the hatch, climbed down the ladder behind it, stepped cautiously onto the floor, and surveyed his surroundings.
This residence likely belonged to some important figure. Although somewhat dilapidated, it felt like a medieval castle. The floor tiles along the corridor were laid out in decorative patterns, with very few cracks.
His Hero predecessor had shown good judgment in establishing a hideout here, with plenty of room to expand downward.
The handbook map displayed: ...Baron Raymont's Estate.
However, this place was far too empty.
Sneaking along like a thief, barely letting his feet touch the ground, Wu Shuang checked a few rooms. There was practically nothing inside, as if the place had been ransacked. It had even fewer furnishings than the hideout—everything portable had been carried off, including the window frames.
Only heavy wooden wardrobes, bedboards, and stone pedestals for display items remained, their decorations long since stripped away.
At the balcony at the end of the corridor was a large window wide enough for a person to pass through and climb out. Beside it sat a collapsible ladder, looking as though someone had specially prepared it.
He should be able to head down from here.
Wu Shuang hesitated, then looked toward the staircase leading downward. He felt he had to inspect the entire mansion; otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to sleep peacefully.
Muffling his footsteps, he crept down the elegantly styled spiral staircase, taking extreme care.
It was clear the master of this house possessed good taste, yet it looked as though thieves had stripped it bare, leaving almost nothing behind. Portions of bedboards and cabinet doors had even been dismantled, their colors and patterns looking vaguely familiar.
The dry firewood in the Hero's Cabinet had most likely come from those. If only his predecessor had prepared a fire, too—come nightfall, Wu Shuang wouldn't even know what to do and might not even be able to light a kerosene lamp.
Muttering complaints about his Hero predecessor, Wu Shuang unconsciously finished exploring most of the estate, which was virtually a hollow shell.
The attic from earlier counted as the fifth floor. Below it were four more floors, with ceiling heights greater than typical houses, all exceeding four meters.
Wu Shuang made his way down to the second floor, which was close to the main exit and quite bright.
Further ahead was a central atrium hall connecting the first and second floors, where the main entrance was located—a grand layout found only in wealthy estates, featuring sweeping staircases curving down on both sides.
Yet the moment he approached the staircases, he crouched down, holding his breath, not daring to make a sound.
Because he faintly saw a figure standing outside the main entrance, which was...
Rate on N.U.
