The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times

Chapter 28

—

[Iron Axe of the Honorable Axe God]

[Grade: Rare]

[Description: An iron axe possessed by the Honorable Axe God.

A seemingly ordinary axe, but imbued with a ‘divine power’ that grants it a durable nature.]

[Level Requirement: 12]

[Equip Requirement: Axeman Class]

[Physical Attack Power: 95~110]

[Durability: 100 / 100]

[Exclusive Option: When used by a profession related to axes, the weapon becomes sturdier, and the user’s defense increases.]

—

[Shoes Made of Libre Silkworm Thread]

[Grade: Rare]

[Description: Shoes made from the precious Libre silkworm thread.

Known for their comfortable fit, as if walking barefoot, and the strong thread used, they are
favored by explorers.]

[Level Requirement: 12]

[Equip Requirement: None]

[Physical Defense: 40]

[Magic Resistance: 25]

– Agility + 2

– Sensory + 1

—

“These guys have decent gear, huh?”

No wonder they looked so professional— their equipment was pretty good.

All of it was of rare grade.

Considering there were almost no heroic-grade items in this section of the game, it was practically near-endgame gear.

‘The Honorable Axe God? It must be a class-specific weapon.’

A class-specific weapon.

It was a divine weapon based on one’s profession, featuring a unique option.

Special items like this had varying effects depending on the level of the god.

‘Normally, you only get these much later…’

Occasionally, there were gods like that.

Gods who, overflowing with affection for their apostles, would bestow their weapons as soon as they changed professions.

That item seemed to be one such creation from a god like that.

‘There are many gods like this among the Mortal Gods, I’ve heard.’

Perhaps due to balance issues, or because high-tier gods were more arrogant, Mortal Gods were often more generous or kind in this way.

Even though the performance of Mortal Gods’ weapons wasn’t particularly outstanding, rare-grade weapons like this would still be valuable to axe warriors.

‘If nothing else, I could always use it myself.’

Although he didn’t have any axe warrior skills, thanks to the synergy between the Weapon Master and Adventurer classes, he could still use basic skills.

If worse came to worst, he could use it temporarily and sell it later.

‘Let’s keep it for now.’

Next, Do-hyeon’s eyes fell on the shoes he obtained from Eung-anMatcha.

‘These are for me.’

Without hesitation, Do-hyeon equipped them.

There was no reason not to.

They were rare-grade shoes with perfect options that increased agility and sensory.

Not to mention, Do-hyeon had been without shoes up until now, making them perfect for him.

And finally…

—

[Assassin’s Dagger]

[Grade: Rare+]

[Description: A special dagger used by assassins from certain organizations.

The blade does not corrode even when touched by poison, and its sharp aura grants it excellent cutting power.]

[Level Requirement: 20]

[Equip Requirement: Assassin Class]

[Physical Attack Power: 99~124]

[Durability: 100 / 100]

[Special Option: When attacking, there is a chance to inflict the ‘Bleed’ effect. The higher the difference in stats between the user and the target, the higher the activation chance, and the lower the difference, the lower the chance.]

—

“This is unexpected.”

The dagger of the assassin boy who seemed to be their leader was a rare+ grade.

It was the same grade as his greatsword.

Despite being a dagger, its attack power wasn’t much lower, likely due to its higher level requirement.

Moreover, it had a special option for causing bleeding.

‘This is pretty good.’

When the boy attempted to ambush him, the dagger had green liquid on it.

With stealth, paralysis poison, and a rare+ weapon?

‘No wonder he was confident.’

With that kind of setup, he must have taken down dozens of people.

Had he not run into Do-hyeon, there would’ve been many more victims.

Though Do-hyeon wasn’t aware, after the assassin boy was defeated, the rest of the group fell easily, having lost these crucial items.

‘I can’t use it just yet…’

Though the level restriction was an issue, his current Warrior set was still the best for hunting goblins.

If he unequipped the greatsword, the set bonus would be broken, so he had to hold off for now.

In the end, the only item he could use right away was the shoes, but having alternatives was important.

Do-hyeon smiled in satisfaction.

‘Maybe I should just hunt villains for the rest of the time until graduation.’

The idea of simply tracking down criminals was tempting.

Of course, villains weren’t easy to come across, and it wasn’t common to find enemies with gear like these, so it remained just a thought.

“By the way… using backstab like this is pretty thrilling.”

He hadn’t had many chances to use backstab since the goblins were all dying in one hit, but this had been a good test.

As a swordsman, Do-hyeon had never understood why assassins played such a dirty game, but now he had a slight glimpse into why people were obsessed with them.

‘It feels good.’

It turned out that manipulating enemies and landing a critical strike with a backstab was more fun than expected.

It might have been because Do-hyeon’s base stats were overwhelming, but the burst damage from marking an enemy exceeded his expectations.

Encouraged by this, Do-hyeon gripped his greatsword tightly.

—

– Red Goblin Leather (21 / 30)

– Blue Goblin Leather (23 / 30)

—

‘Let’s hurry and collect them.’

Once he gathered these, he could finally graduate from Raven Plains.

—

* * *

After collecting the leather, Do-hyeon immediately returned to the city to dispose of the junk items and complete the quest.

“Ooh, you’ve taken care of the goblins for us. Thanks to you, we don’t have to worry as much about goblin ambushes. Every time we stood guard, we were terrified…”

—

[You have cleared the quest ‘Goblin Extermination.’]

[You have earned 70 silver and a certain amount of experience points as a reward.]

[The title effect ‘Maximum Favorability from the Start?’ has activated. Favorability has increased further.]

—

“Excellent! You’re in great shape. Say, have you ever thought about becoming a hunter? Haha, don’t be so serious. I’m just saying you’re outstanding… A fine hunter like you deserves a necklace like this.”

—

[You have cleared the quest ‘Hunter’s Request.’]

[You have earned 80 silver, a certain amount of experience points, and a necklace made from a beast’s tooth as a reward.]

[The title effect ‘Maximum Favorability from the Start?’ has activated. Favorability has increased further.]

—

“Oh my, thank you! You’ve gathered all the leather! It’s not much, but please accept this token of my gratitude.”

—

[You have cleared the quest ‘Gather Goblin Leather.’]

[You have earned 1 gold and a certain amount of experience points as a reward.]

[Please choose between the Red Goblin Leather Belt and the Blue Goblin Leather Pants.]

[You have selected the Blue Goblin Leather Pants.]

[The title effect ‘Maximum Favorability from the Start?’ has activated. Favorability has increased further.]

Then, everyone showed their delight noticeably, smiling at him.

Thanks to his title, the level of friendliness he received felt excessive for merely clearing a single quest.

Among them, the hunter’s reaction stood out the most, but it wasn’t so over the line that it warranted concern.

‘The title effect is really something.’

In Arde, it wasn’t as noticeable, but here, he could definitely feel it.

For now, they were just NPCs he would see once and never again, so this level of effect was fine.

However, when the time came to meet NPCs he needed to target for future quests or rewards, this would surely prove to be a great advantage.

But that was a story for the future…

The equipment items he obtained from this quest were two in total.

[Necklace Made from Beast’s Teeth]

– Rank: Common

– Description: A necklace made from the teeth of carnivorous beasts. Hunters love it.

– Level Requirement: 15

– Wear Restriction: None

– Physical Defense: 50

– Magic Resistance: 21

– Sense +1

[Blue Goblin Leather Pants]

– Rank: Common+

– Description: Pants made by a skilled tailor from blue goblin leather. Due to their tough yet well-ventilated nature, many seek them out.

– Level Requirement: 15

– Wear Restriction: None

– Physical Defense: 59

– Magic Resistance: 48

– Health +2

‘I’ll ditch the necklace…’

Without hesitation, he stored the necklace made from beast’s teeth in his inventory.

Do-hyeon already had the Blood Pact Necklace.

In terms of both appearance and performance, it was an unparalleled, completed item.

Moreover, it was a growth-type item, so he likely wouldn’t need to worry about necklaces for a while.

And as for the pants he got from Emily…

[You have equipped the Blue Goblin Leather Pants.]

‘Hmm… the design is kind of odd.’

He didn’t have any pants at the moment, so he just equipped them, but he wasn’t entirely satisfied.

The blue color added to his overall fierce, red-and-black appearance made him look like an old man on a hiking trip, giving his outfit a mismatched and colorful look.

‘Well, fashion doesn’t feed you.’

If he were someone obsessed with character customization, he would never have accepted it.

Unfortunately for them, Do-hyeon cared only about performance.

Spending a million won on character customization?

He’d rather use that money to strengthen his items one more time!

That was Do-hyeon’s conviction.

—Enhance? Every time you try to enhance, it blows up. Isn’t that just throwing money into a hole?

—…

At the words that Kkukkudakkkukku, who was diligently decorating his character, suddenly spat out, Do-hyeon couldn’t say a word. But in any case, that was how he was.

And the rewards didn’t stop there.

[Your level has increased.]

[You have reached level 17, allowing you to use the west gate.]

‘Finally, the west gate.’

He had leveled up through quest experience, meeting the condition for entering the west gate.

Although he said “finally,” in truth, his pace was absurdly fast.

On average, most players only reached the west gate after spending about 5 hours in Raven.

In contrast, Do-hyeon had reached level 17 in less than 3 hours.

This was possible because the goblins were all one-shot kills, and there was no shortage of PK players generously giving him experience.

[Remaining playtime: 06:36:21]

‘Roughly six and a half hours left… plenty of time.’

Ever since the game had crashed during the gacha the previous day, Do-hyeon had been checking his playtime regularly.

He couldn’t afford to go through that disaster again.

‘It was a relief that it crashed after the gacha was over. If it had crashed right as the gacha started…’

The thought alone gave him chills.

He wouldn’t have gotten a guaranteed item but rather something random, possibly useless.

If that had happened, Do-hyeon probably would have died from frustration.

[You’ve reached level 17? You’ve earned the right to go to the western forest!]

[The perfect strategy guide for levels 17 to 24!]

[Recommended quests to take when tackling the western forest!]

Before heading to the western forest, Do-hyeon looked up strategy guides.

Simply searching for “Raven west gate” or “western forest” brought up numerous posts, showing why God of Savior’s forums were referred to as a sea of information.

‘This kind of thing is certainly convenient.’

In DemRock, he had to figure everything out on his own…

Was this the difference between a dying game and a thriving one?

After picking a few appropriate quests, Do-hyeon sought out the NPCs.

“You’re heading to the western forest? It’s dangerous out there! Ah, but since it’s you, I’m sure you can handle it. Still, be careful! That place is crawling with vicious goblins and cursed insects!”

[You have accepted the quest “Explore the Western Forest.”]

– Rank: Common

– Description: Linda, the potion shop owner, is constantly worried about her lover, the scout Zeke, and can’t sleep well. Explore the west gate and report back to her about the situation.

– Explore a certain area to complete (0 / 1)

– Reward for completion: 1 gold, a set amount of experience, 10 low-grade HP potions, 10
low-grade MP potions

– Failure risk: Linda’s affection may decrease

– Time limit: 24 hours

“The western forest, huh… Hmm, well, I suppose you’ll be fine. Still, it’s a dangerous choice. No Raven resident would go near that place. You look like you think I’m exaggerating?”

“Not really…”

“Everyone is keeping quiet about it now, but what is there to hide? I heard stories as a child about a goblin shaman who practiced black magic. It was such evil black magic! That shaman cursed insects and goblins to build up power, and that’s why the place is like this. Any Raven resident…”

“Skip.”

“Huh? What’s that?”

“…Nothing.”

[You have accepted the quest “Eliminate the Giant Insects.”]

– Rank: Common

– Description: Zrinna, an old fortune-teller, wants you to reduce the number of pesky giant insects. Help this worried old woman by eliminating the insects.

– Giant Insects (0 / 20)

– Reward for completion: 1 gold, a set amount of experience, ???

– Failure risk: Zrinna may give you an uncomfortable lecture

– Time limit: 24 hours

“Waaah, mommy!”

“Why are you crying, kid?”

“Sniff… sniff. A cat stole my pendant and ran to the west gate. It was a birthday gift from my mom… Waaah.”

“I’ll find it for you.”

“Really? But the western forest is dangerous… My mom said I should never go there. But you look really strong. Are you really going to find it for me?”

[You have accepted the quest “Lost Pendant.”]

– Rank: Common+

– Description: Camilla, a girl whose precious pendant was stolen by a cat, asks for help.
Retrieve the pendant, likely beyond the west gate, for the girl.

– Lost Pendant (0 / 1)

– Reward for completion: 1 gold, a set amount of experience, Camilla’s small gift

– Failure risk: Emily’s affection may decrease

– Time limit: 28 hours

He accepted three quests in total, and they all shared one thing in common.

‘These quests sure are verbose.’

They all emphasized the dangers of the western forest.

This hadn’t been the case so far.

There was even an old man telling him stories about the forest’s past that he hadn’t asked for.

It seemed like the game developers were trying to explain the lore of the world through these NPCs, but for someone like Do-hyeon, who didn’t care about minor story details, it was a hassle.

Unlike PC games, he couldn’t just skip through it, so he had no choice but to half-listen.

[Level confirmed.]

[You can now use the west gate.]

“Phew.”

After all that effort, Do-hyeon finally arrived in front of the warp.

[You are moving to the western forest.]

As the message popped up, he muttered softly.

“Let’s do this.”

The moment Do-hyeon stepped into the western forest.