After accepting the commission, Lynn was in no hurry to set out. Since the quest location was in the sewers, he had to make two face masks first.
Fortunately, the guild was quite considerate. After Lynn made his request, the receptionist immediately took out two masks and handed them to him.
Well, three copper coins each.
After buying them, his savings were basically gone. Fortunately, he would be getting a quest bounty soon.
Fully prepared, Lynn took the map provided by the client and set off with Lupa.
Along the way, Lynn found that Lupa seemed to be a bit stronger than he had expected. Although she looked small and slender, this little girl possessed strength from who knows where. Carrying a tower shield nearly as tall as herself in one hand, she walked the entire way without complaining of fatigue once.
Lynn felt that her tower shield probably weighed dozens of jin...
If it were Lynn, he probably would have collapsed from exhaustion by now.
After all, he hadn't activated the “Goblin Warrior” bloodline yet. Up to now, in terms of physical fitness alone, he was actually only comparable to an ordinary adult.
Was this girl really human?
Lynn had his doubts.
...
“Ugh—it stinks!”
Lupa cried out directly.
The moment they stepped down the stone stairs and into the sewers, a sour stench mixed with a strange odor assaulted their noses.
Lynn handed over a mask. “Put this on. Your job is to stand in front of me and hold the lightning lantern steady.”
Lupa obediently put on the mask, then took the lightning lantern from Lynn's hand.
A lightning lantern was a lighting device in this world, somewhat similar to a lantern. Inside its glass cover were two lightning stones that would emit an electric current when brought close together.
Because its light relied on the current generated by magical ores rather than fire, and it was protected by a sealed cover, there was no need to worry about biogas explosions in an environment like the sewers.
This thing was very expensive; Lynn certainly couldn't afford to buy one. Just renting it for a single day had cost him sixty copper coins.
But for this quest's location, the money to rent a lightning lantern could not be spared.
At this moment, Lynn missed Betty's Light spell a little; once he made money from doing commissions in the future, he would also learn magic.
Lupa twisted the bottom of the lightning lantern. The lightning stones inside rotated, and a faint blue light illuminated the originally dark sewer.
The dirty, murky water reflected the figures of the two adventurers.
“Let's move forward. It's not far from the spot where the slimes were spotted on the map.”
The two hadn't walked far when the dark green, slippery moss on the walls gradually disappeared, leaving behind only streaks of sparkling, translucent mucus.
Lynn took a piece of cloth and wiped the wall. The moment it made contact, the cloth hissed. When he pulled it away to look, it was already charred black.
“The moss here seems to have been eaten by the slimes, and their residual corrosive bodily fluids are left on it.”
Slimes were omnivorous monsters; whether it was meat, plants, or even minerals, they would refuse nothing.
From these mucus trails, the number of slimes could be determined: one... two... four...
By the light of the lightning lantern, Lynn counted the number of mucus trails on the ground—a total of six trails. It seemed the information provided by the guild was correct; the number of slimes was indeed six.
The mucus trails extended deeper into the sewers.
The two tracked along the trails left by the slime pack, only to find that the closer they got to the slimes, the murkier the water became.
Lynn said, “No wonder the administration hall added a bounty to this commission. The life activities of these slimes pollute the water.”
Lupa whispered, “I heard from the elders in my tribe that slimes didn't used to be like this...”
The sound of running water echoed in the sewers, so Lynn didn't hear Lupa's words very clearly. He had no choice but to ask, “What did you say?”
Lupa shook her head and gripped her tower shield tightly.
“Nothing. I feel the aura of the monsters getting closer.”
Lynn was somewhat surprised. His current Perception attribute was as high as eight points, yet he hadn't sensed the presence of the monsters yet.
Lupa had actually sensed them before him?
Lynn made a mental note of this but didn't say much. He simply lowered his posture, trying his best to minimize his presence.
Unlike the Stealth skill, which constantly consumed stamina, this was only considered a minor concealment trick.
Soon, Lynn heard the sound of water ahead gradually mixing with the squelching and splashing of jumping slimes.
The acidic, corrosive stench of the slimes even overpowered the foul odor of the sewers, wafting into their noses.
Before they could even notice the stealthily approaching adventurers, Lynn's monster manual was already eager to pop up—
“Year 442 of the New Star Calendar. Adventurer Lynn has unlocked a new entry in the monster manual—Slime. Current number of unlocked entries: 5.”
“Obtained manual reward. Drawing for you now—”
Soon, three cards floated above the book, waiting for Lynn to choose one.
Lynn carefully browsed the three options.
“【Slacking Off】: Do not participate in adventures for three years. After three years, obtain 600 Bloodline Points and 50 gold coins (Note: These Bloodline Points are universally applicable to any monster with a Challenge Rating of twelve or below)”
“【Burst Step】: After casting a spell, you can sprint 5 meters in any direction within 0.3 seconds without consuming stamina.”
“【Late-Game Expert】: Obtain fifteen free attribute points when your class level exceeds twelve.”
Lynn hesitated.
The first option offered a whopping 600 Bloodline Points...
If Lynn still had his former farmer mindset, he might have accepted it. Staying at home to get 17 Bloodline Points and 1.3 gold coins for free every month sounded quite appealing.
But after completing the goblin nest extermination, his mindset was completely different. A single quest taking only dozens of minutes could net him dozens of Bloodline Points.
600 Bloodline Points was actually a bit too little for Lynn.
What really made Lynn hesitate were the latter two options.
The second option, Burst Step, allowed him to sprint five meters in any direction within 0.3 seconds after casting a spell. This was roughly equivalent to a low-end version of Blink, making it a decent life-saving skill.
As for the third option, Late-Game Expert, there was even less need to explain.
A whopping fifteen free attribute points. Lynn's current Intelligence and Perception combined only amounted to seventeen points.
The only drawback was that this reward was too heavily geared toward the late game.
Class level exceeding twelve... Up until now, Lynn didn't even have a class level, let alone know when he would reach level twelve.
After analyzing them, Lynn ultimately chose the second option, Burst Step.
He felt that as his spellcasting ability improved, this reward might become a very important life-saving tool for him.
After making his choice, the card representing Burst Step flew into Lynn's body, and a power similar to a Skill appeared in his mind.
And the 《Monster Identification Manual》 closed once more.
【Unlocking fifteen more monster entries is required for the next Rune reward】
With the reward in hand, Lynn's somewhat excited emotions gradually calmed down. Now, he would start by taking down this pack of slimes.
Lynn took down the clay pot hanging from his belt. Inside was an “alchemical item” he had made using quicklime bought from a brick kiln and caustic potash bought from a soapmaker.
It was actually solid strong alkali.
Because he had already planned to hunt slimes on the way yesterday, Lynn had consulted Betty about slime-related knowledge. The idea of using strong alkali powder to kill slimes from the inside only arose after he understood the racial characteristics of this kind of monster.
Once this substance came into contact with liquid, it would immediately absorb a large amount of moisture and release high temperatures of several hundred degrees, making it perfectly suited for dealing with slimes.
The method of use was also very simple; he only needed to throw the clay pot at a slime.
Now, it was time for it to shine.
...
【Slime/Ooze】: Just like goblins, they are bottom-tier monsters that prefer to hide in dark, damp places. However, it is rumored that they evolved from the residual cells of some ancient monster. It looks like harmless, grayish-green mucus on a stone wall, but once an adventurer is ensnared by it, they will immediately experience the suffocation and burning sensation of being swallowed into the belly of a giant serpent. Like goblins, their bloodline exploration potential is low.
Rate on N.U.
