It’s an Academic Fact That Rankers Are Model Students – Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Change of Study Location: Outdoor Study (1)

“Huh? What’s that player doing?”

“He’s surrounded by NPCs? And they’re shaking hands.”

“What? A hidden quest?”

“That’s what happens when you get countless requests.”

The players about to leave Beginner’s Village looked at Kyung-joon with great interest.

It was rare for so many NPCs to gather around a single player.

“A hero? I heard he’s the hero of Beginner’s Village?”

“Ah, I think I overheard some NPCs talking about a hero while I was buying bread at the bakery.”

“It must be a real hidden quest. I want to go ask what’s going on.”

“Through that? I don’t think the NPCs will even give us a chance to talk.”

People wanted to go to Kyung-joon and ask him what kind of hidden quest he was on.

However, it was very difficult to reach Kyung-joon through the thick wall of NPCs.

In the end, they had no choice but to watch Kyung-joon from afar, wondering what was going on.

“Ah, Contaminated Underground Villa. So the rumor has already spread this far.”

Kyung-joon nodded in understanding, recalling the status window that had popped up when he cleared Siri’s request quest.

“Of course it spread! You saved the village!”

“I had no idea something like that was happening. That research-obsessed wizard had been out of sight for a while now……”

“Do you know Sever?”

“Ugh, how could I not? He was always bothering us with orders for all sorts of magic materials…… I never thought he’d go like that.”

“In the end, it was his own doing. Still, to think he’d give his life to protect the village……”

“It was because Sever bought us time with his life that I was able to arrive in time and stop it.”

“Ah, as expected!”

Kyung-joon and the World’s Best merchant NPCs chatted amicably.

The reason they welcomed Kyung-joon so warmly was simple.

He had saved Beginner’s Village by clearing the Contaminated Underground Villa last time.

If Beginner’s Village had been half-destroyed because of the Contaminated Underground Villa, their jobs would have been half gone.

Commerce thrived when the village was safe and sound and people were around.

Moreover, they themselves could have lost their lives in Beginner’s Village.

To them, Kyung-joon was both the guardian of their jobs and the savior of their lives.

As they talked, Kyung-joon thought to himself.

‘World’s Best merchant guild…… I think I’ve heard of them on the internet as the Number One Player merchant guild. Is that them?’

Kyung-joon was a little surprised to see NPCs employed by a player guild.

He thought player guilds were made up entirely of players.

‘Come to think of it, there’s no reason why they have to be. If players were in charge of all the distribution, the labor costs would be astronomical.’

The cost of living in the world was ten times cheaper than in reality.

So 1 million liyan was about 100,000 won in real money.

Therefore, it was much more efficient to hire NPCs than players, except for a few key personnel.

‘Anyway, it’s easier to talk if they’re a merchant guild.’

Kyung-joon wondered if he could get shards without going to Plovdiv.

“You’re in charge of distribution between Plovdiv and Beginner’s Village, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. And while we’re at it, we also take people who have business in Plovdiv to earn some extra money.”

“Aha, I see. Then you must have quite a few goods with you right now?”

“Uh, is there anything you need?”

Kyung-joon told Wagon that he needed fire shards and light shards.

Wagon instructed his colleagues to check if they had the items.

Soon, the answer came back.

“I’m very sorry, but it seems we don’t have any shards. There has never been a demand for shards in Beginner’s Village…… I’m truly sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. I thought that might be the case.”

Unfortunately, it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to easily obtain shards.

“However, our main branch in Plovdiv does handle shards. If you need them, we can bring them with us when we come back next month.”

“Hmm, if that’s the case, I’ll just go to the main branch myself. I want to see and decide for myself.”

Kyung-joon had never seen a shard before.

He didn’t know if he needed low-grade shards, mid-grade shards, or how many he needed.

He had only theorized and hadn’t actually made a Stand yet, so he needed to research various things.

He didn’t want to wait another month either.

“Let’s just go to Plovdiv together by carriage.”

“Then please come back when it’s convenient for you, Kyung-joon-nim. We’ll depart immediately then.”

Wagon wanted to provide Kyung-joon with the best possible convenience as a hero.

“Then can we leave right away?”

Kyung-joon had no other plans except studying.

So he was ready to leave immediately.

‘I’ve been stuck in the Study Villa for so long that I was getting bored anyway. This will be fun.’

Kyung-joon imagined himself reading a book on a carriage, traveling along the road in a fantasy medieval era.

The sound of the wheat field swaying gently.

The fresh scent of grass in the meadow.

The open sky and surroundings would offer a different kind of experience from studying cooped up in a room.

“Right now, sir?”

“Is that a problem?”

“Of course not! As a matter of fact, we just finished loading up the goods.”

“Perfect.”

It was decided to leave immediately……

“I heard it takes about a week, so here’s 350,000 liyan.”

Kyung-joon handed Wagon the carriage fare.

However, Wagon shook his head and held out a hand in refusal.

“How could we possibly accept money from a hero? Please, just come aboard.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

Kyung-joon put the money away, satisfied.

He was the type to accept when offered and not make a fuss by refusing.

“But won’t your superiors say anything?”

However, a merchant guild was like a company.

He wondered if Wagon had the authority to make such a decision.

“Say something? They’ll be delighted to have Kyung-joon-nim aboard and treat you with the utmost respect! We, the World’s Best merchant guild, are not so petty.”

“He’s right. Don’t worry. I’ll vouch for you.”

“Although our guild has been established for less than two years, we are not as weak as other large guilds.”

Wagon and his colleagues seemed to have great pride in their guild.

Seeing their attitude, Kyung-joon was inwardly impressed.

He thought that the number one player guild would be a gathering of professional merchants, but their image was unexpectedly decent.

“Then allow me to escort you this way, Kyung-joon-nim.”

Guided by Wagon, Kyung-joon boarded the carriage.

Let’s go.

To Plovdiv, the city of merchants and trade.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

Rattle, rattle.

Dozens of carriages were moving in a line on the road.

Each carriage had a flag attached to it.

It read:

『World’s Best』

Flutter, flutter.

The sound of the World’s Best flag fluttering in the cool breeze was very soothing to the ears.

The sky was high and the sun was warm, not harsh.

It was a perfect day for a picnic.

In other words, it was a good day to study.

“……hunch, to bend one’s back. toothy grin, to smile broadly, showing one’s teeth. fidget, to move nervously……”

Kyung-joon was studying English in the best natural environment.

He munched on bread so he wouldn’t get bored just studying.

Of course, it wasn’t just any bread, but the soft bread he had made a lot of a few days ago.

It was also unique bread.

[The effect of the unique item 『Deep Mana Infused Soft Bread』 is applied.]

Along with several status windows, his tenacity increased by 50%.

He didn’t eat the castella that increased his calculation ability.

Because calculation ability wasn’t really required for studying English.

As he resumed studying while eating bread, a cool breeze greeted Kyung-joon.

It wasn’t strong enough to flip the pages of his book.

The gentle breeze added life to the memorization of English words, which might have been a bit boring.

The drowsiness that had been creeping in was gently washed away by the wind.

“…flaunt, to show off. strait, poverty. unabashed, not embarrassed…”

Outdoor study.

Studying was going much better than he had intended.

It was different from ASMR, where he would play nature sounds on YouTube while studying.

YouTube was just a recording of nature sounds, but this was real nature, stimulating all five senses.

The soft air on his skin.

The faint scent of wheat wafting from the distant wheat field.

The rhythmic rattling of the carriage wheels.

An environment difficult to experience in reality, filled with fine dust.

All of this combined with his studies to provide the perfect environment.

[Excellent study environment!]

[The open natural scenery clears the mind and enables flexible thinking.]

[Creativity increased by 30%.]

[Intuition increased by 30%.]

[Memory increased by 30%.]

The hidden bonus trait of Infinite Knowledge Seeker was activated.

It was the trait of ‘improving study ability according to the surrounding environment’.

In an environment like a private study room where all sides were blocked and one had to focus only on the book in front of them, concentration or calculation ability would be enhanced.

On the other hand, the open natural environment, like now, softened the mind and enabled flexible thinking.

People often say to go out for a walk when you can’t think clearly, don’t they?

They say that thoughts come to mind more easily when you get some fresh air outside.

Hence, the increased creativity, intuition, and memory.

In particular, the increased memory began to greatly help Kyung-joon’s English study.

“……hunch, to bend one’s back. toothy grin, to smile broadly, showing one’s teeth. fidget, to move nervously……”

The English words he had memorized earlier were instantly engraved in his mind and popped out of his mouth.

He had only read them once, but he had memorized them all.

Kyung-joon, who had resorted to rote memorization in the beginning because he couldn’t understand.

Perhaps that was why his memory was much better than others.

With the added 30% memory buff, memorizing English words was a piece of cake.

“Wow, how long has Kyung-joon-nim been doing that for?”

“He’s still reading even though it’s been a while since we left?”

“Tell me about it. He doesn’t seem to want to take his eyes off the book. I’d like to tell him to take a break, but he’s so focused……”

“He seems to be the most dedicated wizard I’ve ever seen.”

“That’s right. And he’s so polite too. Most wizards are too arrogant to even look at.”

The wizards of the world often had a superiority complex because they were self-taught.

Even in reality, there were people who had a superiority complex because they were smart or good at studying.

The world was full of such wizards.

But Kyung-joon was polite and humble, so the NPCs couldn’t help but like him.

Moreover, unlike other players, he had a high fame of over 200, which made them even more respectful.

“But isn’t he mumbling really fast?”

“He’s speaking at twice the speed of a normal person.”

“The speed at which he flips through the book is no joke either.”

Kyung-joon studying English was a very strange sight to others.

This was because of the effect of Kyung-joon’s Dimensional Study Room.

When they experienced one hour, Kyung-joon experienced two hours, so of course he looked twice as fast.

“……flaunt, to show off. strait, poverty. unabashed, not embarrassed……”

Even though the World’s Best NPCs were chatting and driving the carriage, Kyung-joon didn’t pay any attention.

To be precise, the words didn’t even reach his ears.

That’s how immersed he was in his studies.

[Incredible immersion!]

[The 『Trance』 effect of the mythical skill 『Infinite Reading (Lv.2)』 is activated.]

▶Upon entering the Trance state, concentration, including all buffs, is doubled.

The murmuring voices around him.

The sound of the flag flapping in the wind.

The rattling of the carriage wheels.

The moment all the surrounding sounds faded away and silence arrived, Kyung-joon entered the Trance state.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

Black Secret Village.

It was a notorious bandit village located about halfway between Beginner’s Village and Plovdiv.

A day in Black Secret Village was truly spectacular.

It always started with violence and theft and ended with murder.

Dozens, hundreds of gangs were constantly fighting each other, and civil war was a daily occurrence.

When they got tired of or bored with the civil war, they would turn their attention outward and plunder any village that looked tasty.

It was a truly wicked bandit village.

That was Black Secret Village.

“Boss Heukgil-dong, we’ve found the World’s Best carriage you were talking about.”

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