It’s an Academic Fact That Rankers Are Model Students – Chapter 140

Chapter 140: Herb on the Cliff (1)

“Hello, this is SurvivalKing.”

A phrase you could always see on SurvivalKing’s YouTube channel 『Man vs World』.

His channel was visited by most players who played World, from beginners to rankers.

It had been almost two years since its release, and with less than 30% of the map explored by players, the information available in his videos was very useful.

Therefore, Kyung-joon had also been watching it occasionally lately.

“I’ve survived even the harshest places in The World. In a place where you can’t survive a single day without proper World knowledge, I have to spend another week.”

Speaking the lines that were now completely familiar to his tongue from repetition, SurvivalKing continued recording.

“This place I’m at is the Whale Forest, northeast of the Aegis Protectorate, which occupies the largest unexplored area of The World. This place is practically abandoned by the Aegis Protectorate, which fails to function as a state. The nearest town is far away, there are no NPCs in the forest, and instead, it’s teeming with terrifying undiscovered monsters.”

SurvivalKing’s expression turned serious.

Looking directly at the recording magic stone, he continued.

“There, I may have to navigate treacherous terrain, fall into deep swamps, desperately solve hidden quests, or encounter the most dangerous monsters in the world. So, let’s start today’s Humanvs.WorldShowdown.”

As SurvivalKing started moving deeper into the forest, CameraMan followed behind.

He was controlling dozens of recording magic stones, which cost 69,900 won a month at the cash shop.

Even with cash items, it’s difficult to control this many recording stones so freely.

This was a unique skill of CameraMan, who had the hidden class 『Recorder』.

“This Whale Forest starts from the east of the Aegis Protectorate and continues to the far east, which no player has ever reached. Look over there.”

Whoosh.

Even without specific instructions, CameraMan understood SurvivalKing’s intentions and raised the recording stone into the sky.

Then, the endless stretch of forest came into view.

“Look. Continuous forests and mountain ranges. This is truly the edge of civilization. Also, the dungeons that remain here are evaluated as some of the most notorious dungeons in World. Because not only is it difficult to reach them, but even if you do, you’ll be wiped out right from the first room. Furthermore, it is said that numerous monsters summoned during the Demon Wars, or born from its aftermath, still remain unvanquished in this Whale Forest.”

SurvivalKing’s words could be summarized as 『You die if you stay here』.

Nevertheless, SurvivalKing’s equipment was practically no different from that of a beginner player.

No, it was even a bit much to call him a beginner player.

“I have some basic survival tools. A basic dagger, a water bottle, a flint lighter, etc. Things you can all get once you reach level 10. And CameraMan will be with me. Let’s go.”

Just like that, SurvivalKing showed himself gathering, hunting monsters, and surviving using only basic tools.

As expected of a ranker within the top 100, he was surviving quite well with just basic tools.

At that moment, SurvivalKing discovers something.

“This trace is……”

SurvivalKing stopped in front of some slightly discolored soil, sniffing it, tasting it, and exhibiting all sorts of strange behavior.

Then, he suddenly jumped back in surprise.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back off. Do you see this? Leopard tracks! Judging by the taste of the soil, it hasn’t been even 20 minutes since it did its business here. This place is its territory. It’s easy to think of it as a normal leopard and let your guard down, but it’s not that easy.”

Following SurvivalKing’s hand, CameraMan’s recording stone began to zoom in on the spot he was pointing at.

“The sharp marks on the ground here. The front claws are bigger and sharper, so not only are there paw prints, but also claw marks like this. And looking at the black scratches on the tree trunk, you can easily tell it’s a 『Black Leopard』. This is fortunate. Judging by its condition, it’s very close. Maybe it’s up in this tree……”

The moment SurvivalKing looked up at the tree……

Crash!

A black lightning bolt struck from above.

Fwoosh……

As the sound subsided and the smoke cleared.

Instead of SurvivalKing, the Black Leopard was standing there.

Growl!

SurvivalKing took a stance and faced off against the Black Leopard.

“Whew……! If my analysis had been any slower, I would have died! But I’m alive. CameraMan is safe too. First, let’s try using a skill. 『Flora Observation』!”

SurvivalKing’s eyes narrowed like a predator’s, and a status window popped up in front of him.

[Black Leopard]

▶Type: Beast

▶Formation Type: Solitary

▶Pattern Difficulty: Medium

▶Average Level: Lv.210~Lv.230

▶Characteristics: dark magic, high agility, medium strength

▶Habitat: Whale Forest Tail~Whale Forest Waist, ???, ???

▶Skills: Black Lightning, Senses, ???, ???

▶Description: A mutated form of some leopards affected by dark magic during the Demon Wars. It can use a few dark magic skills, including a ranged attack that shoots black lightning through its black fangs. It has keen senses, making it difficult to ambush and boasting a high evasion rate.

SurvivalKing quickly scanned the 『Flora Observation』 status window.

“CameraMan, step back.”

He then started pushing CameraMan back.

“It’s a dangerous beast with many unknowns, from its habitat to its skills. Trying to catch it with just a dagger is extremely dangerous.”

SurvivalKing was saying they needed to run away right now.

But.

Clang.

He pulled out a dagger from his inventory and gripped it tightly.

“But I’m also very hungry right now, and if my stamina drops any further, it could be dangerous at night. More so than now. So, while I still have some stamina left, I have to decide.”

SurvivalKing licked his lips and pointed the dagger forward.

“Although it’s at the very entrance of the Whale Forest, it’s the Black Leopard that’s likely at the top of the food chain around here. But right now, it’s a good source of protein for me.”

“Growl……”

The Black Leopard growled lowly, reacting to SurvivalKing’s hostility.

At the same time, SurvivalKing prepared to push off the ground, his guard up.

“I needed a warm leather blanket to spend the night anyway, so this works out perfectly……!”

“Roar!”

Thud!

With their cries as a signal, SurvivalKing and the Black Leopard clashed.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

Three items that the Triple Horn Wild Boar gave to Kyung-joon as keepsakes from his mother.

One of them was a horn.

[Triple Horn Wild Boar’s Magnificent Horn]

▶A horn embedded in the forehead of the Triple Horn Wild Boar, a named monster in Whale Forest. It is so hard that the horn will not break even if the forehead is broken.

▶Item Grade: Rare

The other two were fangs.

[Triple Horn Wild Boar’s Sharp Fangs (2)]

▶One of the Triple Horn Wild Boar’s huge twin fangs, which seems to be of no use in chewing food. However, it is perfect for attacking.

▶Item Grade: Rare

Kyung-joon rested his chin on his hand, looking at the horn and two fangs placed right below.

On the floor, in addition to what the Triple Horn Wild Boar had given him, various items were lined up, including the Ice Demon Claw given by the spotted deer, crafting materials given by the forest horned rabbit, and more.

All of them were brought by the monsters of Whale Forest.

“I keep getting something every time I give them advice.”

<They are all loyal friends.>

“Yeah. They’re better than people.”

Kyung-joon felt that he had made the right decision to befriend Whale Forest instead of the Holy Cross Faction.

First of all, he liked that they were honest.

He didn’t have to rack his brains and play politics like he did in Luxemb.

Just help, get to know each other, and become friends.

That was all their relationship was, but it was the most trustworthy relationship of all.

“But what am I supposed to do with this?”

Instead, the problem was how to use the items they had brought as a token of their friendship.

At first, he thought he would just sell them when the World’s Best merchant’s carriage came since there were many decent items…….

“How can I sell something a friend gave me?”

He couldn’t just sell what they had given him as a token of their friendship.

“At least I should keep them somewhere, or it would be best to use them myself…… but I can’t think of where to use them.”

<The horns and fangs are big and beautiful, so how about making them into ornaments and displaying them?>

“Uh, well…… like decorating my desk?”

<Yes.>

Kyung-joon imagined the Triple Horn Wild Boar’s big and beautiful horn + fangs next to his desk.

It bothered him.

“……I think it would only distract me from concentrating.”

<I thought so.>

“Yeah.”

While Kyung-joon and Teemo were deep in thought.

“Oh my! Aren’t those the horns and fangs of the Triple Horn Wild Boar?”

A villager approached, showing interest in the items Kyung-joon had received.

“Kingyear?”

“Yes, it’s Kingyear. But this looks exactly like the one I fought back in the day. Oh! Here, here! Even the scratch next to the fang! Wow~ Brings back memories. Back in my day, I used to make a living with a sword in my hand……. “

It was the appearance of Kingyear, who always talked about the good old days.

As he continued to ramble on about his past, he exclaimed in interest at another item.

“Whoa~! Isn’t this adamantite? This reminds me of the old days again! Back in my day…… No, back then, I spent months in the mines just to dig up one of these! Oh, oh! Is this perhaps the Binding Stone? Wow, this reminds me of that time! When I went to the Flame Hammer Dwarf Clan of the Humanity Cantons in my younger days, I was quite the craftsman……. “

From the beginning, he kept saying, ‘back in my day’, ‘in my time’, ‘in the past’, ‘when I was young’, and so on…….

Kingyear was very excited, picking up each item on the floor and telling stories of his past that no one wanted to know.

As Kyung-joon was half-listening to him.

“Yawn……. “

“Ah, Mr. Ceram.”

Perhaps hearing the commotion, Ceram, who had woken up a little late, rubbed his eyes and approached Kyung-joon.

“Did you sleep late last night?”

“Yes. I was reading the book you lent me, Kyung-joon-nim.”

Seeing Kyung-joon brilliantly solve the monsters’ problems using his diverse knowledge, Ceram would study on his own when he was not teaching Kyung-joon.

Mostly from books about another world (reality) that he had borrowed from Kyung-joon.

“But are these all things you received from the forest residents?”

“Yes. I think they’re items they got from hunting players. I feel bad about just selling them, so I was wondering what to do with them. But there are too many and they are so diverse.”

“Is that so? Indeed, from unique items to low-grade items…… There’s quite a variety.”

As Ceram was also looking at the items on the floor with interest…….

“……Hmm?”

Suddenly, Ceram’s sleepy eyes widened.

What he was looking at was a weed.

[Weed]

▶It’s a weed. It looks a little strange, but it’s a weed.

▶Item Grade: Low

A completely useless weed.

“Huh? Mr. Ceram?!”

But then, Ceram suddenly started munching on the weed.

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