Chapter 59

While looking at the reinforced Wind Cutter with satisfaction, a sudden question popped into Carpe's mind.

"Bro. But when we open a Skill Pack, some of the cards are untradable, and some are tradable, right?"

-Yeah. By ratio, about 80% are untradable, and 20% are tradable.

"What do we do with the untradable ones? I don't think you just leave them in your inventory."

It was a valid point, but not all skills from Skill Packs were useful.

What if you opened a Skill Pack and got 1-star or 2-star skills? Or even skills that didn't fit your class?

No player would waste precious skill points on such mediocre skills.

"You can sell the tradable ones. As for the untradable ones? There must be a way to deal with them."

-...You're only thinking about this now?

If it were other players, they would have thought of this problem long ago after drawing bad cards.

But this didn't apply to Carpe.

Repetition.

Because Carpe had an unprecedentedly powerful skill that no other player could even imagine.

As long as all five skill cards weren't 1-star or 2-star, there was no such thing as a bad card in Carpe's dictionary.

"This is all thanks to the Back Command. Demonic Descent! Ten Thousand Demons Roar!"

-Anyway, if you can't talk, then...

But the Heavenly Demon didn't seem to mind Carpe's flattery. He cleared his throat and began to speak.

-As you know, Rase gives a Skill Pack every five levels after a player changes their class. With 500 million Rase players, that means 500 million skill cards are released every five levels.

And the number of players is currently skyrocketing.

If left unchecked, it wouldn't be long before tens or hundreds of billions of skill cards were released.

-Even though Rase is a game created with cutting-edge technology, the accumulation of skill card resources in this manner could become a burden in the long run.

Therefore, Rase has a system in place to recover skill cards from players.

It's the 'Skill Card Combination' system.

-There's an NPC who can combine multiple skill cards to create a new one. Of course, it's random.

"Wow. So Rase has that too. It seems to have all the systems that drive players crazy."

According to the Heavenly Demon, every major city has a card combination NPC.

You can hand over a minimum of two and a maximum of six cards to the combiner, who will give you a new card.

"Obviously, the better the cards you put in, and the more you invest, the better the card you'll get, right? It's perfect for driving people insane."

-What's the point of saying that? Because of this crazy system, there's even a dedicated thread for card combinations on the forums.

On the spicy forum, the 'Skill Combination Board (SkilCom)' was one of the places where the most delusional posts could be found, alongside the Back Command board.

"Ugh! I got a 9-star skill!!! I did it with a 666666 combination! From now on, the official SkilCom combination is 666666 Satan Combination!"

"To get a good skill card, it's important to be in the combiner's good graces. I start by bowing 108 times to the combiner with a devout heart."

"I urgently need a loan. I swept up all the skill cards rolling around in the auction house. If I can't get a good card, I'll go work on a tuna fishing boat."

The SkilCom board on the spicy forum was even crazier than the rest.

-Anyway, thanks to the combination system, the overflowing untradable cards can be reborn through combinations. Of course, the SkilCom delusions are also reborn.

"...I hope I never have to visit that place."

After hearing this terrifying story, Carpe felt a renewed determination to play the game more seriously and diligently.

"Anyway, since I've opened all the Skill Packs, I should finish off the bugs."

-Going solo again today?

"Ah, now that I think about it, what are Hyang and Tina doing?"

-When I checked, they were training the hamster workers.

"Hmm..."

After a moment's thought, Carpe decided to go solo.

"After all, during the sap bug quest, even if I kill them, the experience points will go to them too."

And most importantly, the quest notification mentioned that additional rewards were given if the quest was completed solo.

They might have started together, but it would be a waste to give up the additional rewards now.

"Well, anyway, since it's all in one place, I should be able to finish it today."

Carpe set out to hunt bugs again.

After about an hour.

[Sap Bug Elimination (401/800)]

"Phew. Just half now."

-Not bad speed. You should be able to finish it today.

"Ugh... It's kind of frustrating."

Carpe looked around.

The sap bugs on the trees were noticeably fewer.

"It takes longer to find them than to kill them. The respawn rate is really slow."

-Indeed, the respawn method for these bugs is quite unique.

While other typical monsters respawn with a short light show within the area, these sap bugs would fly in from somewhere and stick to the trees.

And as soon as they stuck, they would immediately bury their snouts into the tree and start sucking sap.

-It looks peaceful. Like bees collecting honey.

"Exactly. Do these bugs collect honey and store it in their hives...?"

-...Hive?

Carpe and the Heavenly Demon looked at each other simultaneously.

-You too?

"Bro too?"

The same thought had crossed both their minds.

"Do these bugs have a nest somewhere, given that they fly in from somewhere?"

-It seems likely. It's worth investigating.

Carpe quickly scanned the surroundings.

He soon spotted a sap bug sucking sap from a tree. Its pouch, attached to its rear, was quite swollen, indicating it had been collecting sap for a while.

"That one looks good."

Unlike before, Carpe didn't crush the sap bug but watched it silently.

Zzzz- Zzzz-

As time passed, the sap bug's rear grew even larger.

"Ugh... It's kind of like a mosquito sucking blood, which is really annoying. Should I just kill it?"

-Now you're projecting your emotions onto a tree? Just hold on, man.

Just as Carpe thought the sap pouch might burst.

Swish!

The sap bug, which resembled a stag beetle, spread its wings and started flying away.

"Great. Time to tail it."

-You're just following it openly. What's this 'tail' business?

It wasn't difficult to follow.

The bug's body was heavy from storing so much sap, making it hard to control its flight.

All Carpe had to do was follow it as if on a leisurely walk.

The stag beetle continued deeper into the forest.

Swish! Swish!

The more he followed, the more sap bugs he encountered.

He began to see more bugs flying in to collect sap and others returning with their pouches full.

"Looks like I hit the jackpot."

After following for about 20 minutes, he finally found what he was looking for.

As he pushed through the forest, a large cave appeared.

The bug Carpe had been following flew into the cave, and other stag beetles occasionally flew out and headed somewhere.

"These bugs were all hiding here."

-Your guess was right. Now it's time for Carpe the Exterminator to take the stage.

"The basic principle of pest control is to eliminate the root cause."

Killing flying mosquitoes was just a temporary solution.

To completely eradicate them, their habitat had to be destroyed.

"Phew. Here I go."

Carpe took a deep breath and confidently entered the cave.

The cave wasn't as dark as he expected. The walls were dotted with a material that emitted a faint light.

"Wow. Jackpot."

When Carpe turned the first corner in the cave, he let out a gasp of amazement.

He saw sap bugs covering the walls.

"Jackpot. Absolute jackpot."

-You found the right spot. With this many, you should be able to complete the quest in no time.

Not only were there many sap bugs, but here, he didn't have to worry about damaging the trees.

He could freely cast spells.

"Swinging my sword was getting a bit boring."

Carpe stretched out his hand toward the wall and cast a spell.

"Wind Cutter!"

Kaboom!

The wind blades created a loud noise as they tore through the cave walls.

[Sap Bug Eliminated.]

[Sap Bug Eliminated.]

[Sap Bug Eliminated...]

The bugs couldn't withstand a spell that they couldn't survive a single sword strike from.

The sap bugs were mercilessly swept away by the Wind Cutter, but that wasn't the end.

[The 'Wind Cutter' skill activates again due to the skill enhancement effect.]

The +1 enhancement effect of the Wind Cutter triggered, and the skill unleashed once more.

Kaboom!

Another wave of sap bugs was swept away.

"Ah. This is it!"

Just as a caterpillar must eat leaves to survive, a mage must cast spells.

Killing one by one with sword strikes was tedious, but sweeping them away with spells was incredibly refreshing.

[Sap Bug Elimination (437/800)]

He had worried that the bugs in the cave might not count toward the quest, but fortunately, the counter increased.

Now there was nothing to stop him.

Carpe cast spells whenever the cooldown was up and swung his fists when it wasn't.

"Wind Cutter! Fire Arrow!"

Kaboom!

[Sap Bug Elimination (461/800)]

...

...

[Sap Bug Elimination (504/800)]

[Level Up! Bonus points have been awarded.]

"This is what a game is. God game! Absolutely god game!"

-If you were a normal person, wouldn't you have a moment of reflection and wonder, 'Can I really get away with this?'

"Ah, everything's fine, but it's a bit disappointing that there are no drops. God game canceled. It's a bit lacking for a god game."

-Your conscience is lacking...

The cave walls were covered with an absurd number of bugs.

Even though the level difference between Carpe and the sap bugs had widened, and he was only getting a tiny amount of experience points, every little bit still counted.

Kaboom!

[Sap Bug Elimination (611/800)]

After killing about 600 bugs, Carpe noticed something odd.

-Hmm. This is a bit strange.

The Heavenly Demon spoke, sounding puzzled.

"What's strange? Is it too easy?"

-That too, but more importantly, I don't understand the bugs' reactions. It's strange that they don't move even as their kin are being killed right next to them.

They should either run away or attack the enemy.

One of these should be the normal reaction, but the bugs remained stuck to the walls.

As if they had been ordered to 'stick to the wall no matter what.'

"Hmm, you have a point."

-There might be something going on. Just be cautious.

"Got it."

But despite the Heavenly Demon's warning, the bug hunting went smoothly.

[Level Up! Bonus points have been awarded.]

[Sap Bug Elimination (800/800)]

[Quest Completed. You can claim your reward from the relevant NPC.]

Carpe completed the quest in about an hour after entering the cave.

Not only that, but he also leveled up twice, reaching level 32. It was an unimaginable leveling speed for players of the same level.

-It seems my worries were unfounded. Are you going back now? Or do you want to keep hunting?

Carpe had been hunting non-stop, but there were still many sap bugs left on the walls.

Carpe smiled at the Heavenly Demon's question.

"Just one more, and I'll go."

-One more? What's with the sudden change?

"Bro said it yourself. These bugs look like they're collecting honey."

Then, of course, there must be a hive.

"I need to find the hive owner."

It was time to hunt the queen bee.

A player who became strong through luck.