Rivalry: Infinite Buff

Chapter 52: Adventure

Ivan knew that it took three days for the fruit to mature. He decided while he waited he would wander and find a mission. He checked his Friends List but none of his friends were online so he had no choice but to go on the trip alone.

"Where should I go?" Ivan mumbled to himself.

The player community mentioned Leaf Town was the best area for a beginner like him. But, after thinking about it for a while, Ivan decided to explore the west of Explorer Foothills. They only went to the east before, according to the boss they did encounter, Ivan believed there was a good chance there was another on the west side.

Having made up his mind, Ivan went back to Leaf Town to supply food and powders. As he approached the town, Ivan was surprised to see what looked like a brand-new small town. Houses were newly built; the road was even wider than before, and there were freshly planted maple trees and flowers all over town. 

With the continuous improvements, more and more citizens from other neighborhoods moved to Leaf Town, the town's population had exceeded 12,000 people.

Ivan didn’t expect to see such a prosperous town after Mirage's destruction. He grinned at the thought of collecting more taxes, the more prosperous the better for him. As he passed through a crowd of players, he could see that many of them were born in Novice Village and finally made their way to Leaf Town.  

Some appeared to be visiting out of curiosity, others looked at the maple trees, some took photos, but no one seemed intent on purchasing anything. The only thing that comforted Ivan was the Teleportation Array bursting from time to time, at least he could get income from that.

"Don't worry, Ivan! This is just the beginning. There is a bright future is waiting for you!” Ivan encouraged himself.

The bread in Leaf Town was cheaper than in Ginkgo Village so after getting all of the food he needed, Ivan left for Explorer Hills. Just over an hour later, Ivan reached the stream the group passed the last time but instead of going east, Ivan walked west.

System: Congratulations! You just discovered West Wetlands! AP+30!

AP again? Ivan thought and quickly opened his Stats, which showed 7010 AP. He had no clue what he could do with them, so he continued his trip. 

After walking for 10 minutes, Ivan was attacked by a mob.

-20

Ivan jumped back and then threw red powder and smashed his Speed Staff.

-15 from the red power

-32 from the Speed Staff

"s**t! I should have learned some attack skills! I bet I look like a hunter now,” Ivan complained. Seeing the injuries he inflicted on the mob though, he was quite proud. He had forgotten that his equipment had 85 attack points.

With another smash of his Speed Staff, the Stats of the mob popped up.

Falcarius Cub (Common)

Level: 18

ATK: 37

HP: 580

DEF: 16

Profile: The claw-like mob cubs hover in the swamp. They are good at hiding.

The mob's Stats were similar to that of Centaur, except for the Invisible skill.

Ivan hit it a few more times only to see that Falcarius was covered by a faint black light. The cub then disappeared and two seconds later showed up behind Ivan. He guessed that he already knew the secret of the invisible skill, it was not an invisible skill, it drilled into the ground.

With continuous attacks, it took Ivan about ten seconds to take the mob down. He gained eighty coins, which is what he expected from a mob baby. A Falcarius Claw also fell when the mob was killed.

Ivan rubbed Falcarius Claw carefully; it was extremely hard and reflected like metal under the sun. Ivan knew this could be useful to build weapons. After putting the Claw in his backpack, Ivan moved towards the deep marsh.

Falcarius cubs jumped out of the swamp from time to time, Ivan was not obsessed with fighting. He would run away if there were more than three cubs in one location. He was aware of his limits and three cubs would be too much to handle on his own.

By the time he reached the far west, Ivan increased his XP by 20% and had dozens of silver coins. However, the more he moved, the worse he felt. There were several times he almost pulled out the Scroll of Town Portal, but he didn’t want to when he thought of his investment, his bread.

There was no way he could turn back unless he received Epic Level equipment. He had to keep going.

Five minutes later, Ivan reached a larger swamp, where the water was as high as his knees. Looking around, Ivan estimated that it was about one thousand square meters and was deciding which way to travel when there was a sudden pain in his foot.

-60

-58

Seeing two injury numbers float above his head, Ivan threw powder at the mob immediately. After healing himself, Ivan checked to see what was in front of him. It’s still a Falcarius, but a mature one. Raising its paws, it rushed toward Ivan like a starving animal attacking prey.

Falcarius

Level: 19

ATK: 50

HP: 700

DEF: 20

Profile: Grown Falcarius. It masters the Revenant.

Ivan frowned when he saw the Stats. The difference between the cub and the mature one was like an intern and an official employee. The trickiest part was the mature mob knew the Revenant, which meant its HP could refill regularly.

Ivan had to quickly figure something out.