Chapter 7. The Legendary Max-Level Rabbit (2)

Following Bokshil, Ian soon realized that they had reached a place where no human presence could be felt.

Just a moment ago, there had been a crowd, but now it felt as if they had entered a different world, an alien sensation.

Then, Ian noticed Bokshil standing in front of a familiar object, holding a spinning top.

"Phantasm Stone?"

"Kyuung! Nyeong!"

As Ian muttered, Bokshil jumped up and down as if to say, "That's right!"

The Phantasm Stone was a medium that generated the Dream Fog, known as the source of the dream mist.

The white frost was already rising from the Phantasm Stone, spreading and engulfing the surroundings.

"You have a cute side, Bokshil?"

"Kyuung~"

The Phantasm Stone couldn't be broken. Or rather, there was no reason to break it.

However, this was the first time Ian had found a Phantasm Stone and entered the dream, which was why he was so excited. A Phantasmalist could enter the Dream Fog from anywhere, but finding the Phantasm Stone was difficult. It was invisible to ordinary people.

Bokshil had found it in an instant.

"Actually, aren't you a dog, not a rabbit?"

"Kyuung…"

Praising Bokshil, Ian stroked her head and looked around. The place where the crowd had gathered earlier was now visible.

People were falling asleep one by one, and those still awake were in shock and confusion.

Seeing this, Ian picked up Bokshil and approached the Phantasm Stone.

'Yes.'

* * *

When Ian entered, he found himself in a medieval village.

In his previous life, Ian had not been a Phantasmalist, so this was his first direct experience. However, he had the knowledge and information implanted from the future.

'This is Southriver Village.'

Before entering the village, Ian took out the spinning top from his inventory. It was the only weapon he had, so he had to use it.

Bokshil, who had also taken out a spinning top, was jumping around happily. She liked it because it was a couple's item.

Ian still found it heavy, even with the stats applied, but it was lighter than when he first picked it up. Before, it felt like carrying a bag of rice, but now it was more like swinging a baseball bat.

"Is it not heavy, Bokshil?"

"Kyuung?"

Bokshil's reaction seemed to ask, "What's heavy?" so Ian gave up trying to understand.

Thus, one person and a jade rabbit entered Southriver Village.

"Oh, stranger!"

The system message had not even finished when Ian's spinning top sliced through the air, making the village chief's hair flutter.

"Better not try to scam me."

"Y-Yes!"

The characteristic of Southriver Village was that if you underestimated it, you would end up doing all sorts of labor quests and receive only a meager reward.

From the village chief to a five-year-old child, everyone was eager to use you for trivial errands.

Seeing Ian's threatening attitude, the village chief stammered.

"S-Stranger, we are in a very difficult situation…"

"Do you need something to boost your vigor, or does that woman need her laundry collected, or does that kid need candy for his girlfriend? Oh, and that man needs to send a letter to his friend across the river."

As Ian's accurate descriptions continued, more and more people in the village flinched.

Actually, the content of the quests didn't matter as long as the rewards were good. The problem was that the rewards were disproportionately poor compared to the time invested.

All these miscellaneous quests were just preliminary work to trigger the main quest.

"Instead, why don't you tell me about the real important matters? Like the villagers who were captured by monsters."

"First, the food to boost vigor…"

Ian sighed at the village chief's insistence on the side quests.

"Bokshil."

"Kyuung!"

Understanding Ian's call, Bokshil jumped up with the spinning top.

Kwakwakwak!

The village sign that read "Southriver" was shattered.

"H-Haha. Now that I think about it, there is a more important matter. Actually, a few young men from the village went hunting and haven't returned for days."

〈Southriver Main Quest: Missing Youths〉

Confirming that the main quest had appeared, Ian looked around the village and clicked his tongue.

'Five young men are missing, and you're looking for food to boost vigor?'

You shouldn't try to understand the world of dreams. It was clearly something that couldn't happen in reality.

Ian listened to the last known location of the missing youths from the village chief and set off immediately.

Even though he already knew the location, he was prepared to give a corresponding reward if the chief had given false information, but the chief had surprisingly provided the information willingly.

The location was Southwood, a rugged forest north of Southriver Village.

* * *

After Ian awakened as the first Phantasmalist, the Dream of Origin appeared in various parts of the world, and others had also awakened as Phantasmalists.

One of them was Kang Sung-ho, another Phantasmalist from South Korea.

Kang Sung-ho, who had barely passed the Dream of Origin after struggling through near-death experiences, also came to Gangnam, where the strange phenomenon was occurring.

And amidst the confused people, Kang Sung-ho, who was also confused, ended up entering the Dream Fog.

"Wh-What? Southriver?"

"Stranger…"

The village chief, who had been startled by the appearance of a new stranger after Ian had left for Southwood, appeared hesitantly.

"Grandpa, are you okay? You look pale…"

Unlike Ian, who had immediately swung his spinning top, Kang Sung-ho's kind and friendly attitude made the village chief smile.

Moreover, there was no strange monster rabbit. Finally, the ideal stranger had arrived.

Regaining his confidence, the village chief straightened his back and cleared his throat.

"Stranger, welcome to Southriver Village."

"Uh, yes…"

"Our village is in a very difficult situation…"

The village chief's introduction, which began in this way, lasted for nearly three hours. Despite the boredom, the naive Kang Sung-ho listened attentively.

"So, to sum up, we need food to boost vigor right now. If you can get it, I will give you a very good reward."

"Ah, I understand!"

Believing the village chief, Kang Sung-ho ran around busily to find the food.

Meanwhile, other villagers, who had been watching the situation, also came forward to request side quests.

"The laundry in the yard has disappeared! Can you find it? It might be a thief."

"Bro, I need candy for my girlfriend."

"I'm disabled, but can you deliver this letter to my friend across the river? And bring something back. Heavy? No, it's not heavy at all."

Kang Sung-ho, who had been working hard as a pushover, or rather a errand boy, for the villagers, completed all the side quests and returned to the village chief.

They said the rewards would come from the village chief.

In any case, after delivering the food to boost vigor to the village chief, Kang Sung-ho looked at him expectantly.

"Oh, you did a great job."

"Yes, is it over now?"

"Ah, I forgot to mention earlier…"

What was he going to ask for this time? Even the kind, or rather, good-natured Kang Sung-ho was starting to feel wary.

"Can you make a new village sign to replace the broken one? Ha-ha, this is really the last request."

* * *

While Kang Sung-ho, or rather, Kang Sung-ho, was being taken advantage of in Southriver Village, Ian was searching Southwood to solve the main quest.

The forest was as dark as night, filled with a chilling atmosphere.

"Uu…"

"What's going on?"

Adding to the eerie forest were the floating spirits wandering around. They were modern people who wandered aimlessly, not understanding why they were there.

'These are the spirits of ordinary people caught in the Dream Fog.'

This was a familiar sight to Ian, so he wasn't particularly surprised.

When ordinary people were caught in the Dream Fog, their physical bodies fell asleep in the real world, and their consciousness was trapped in the dream, becoming spirits like these.

Phantasmalists could either bring them back to reality or they would remain trapped until the dream was completely cleared.

They usually wandered in areas where monsters appeared, and if they were trapped for too long, they would turn into monsters.

"Please, save me…"

"Don't worry, you're not dead yet."

Ian moved forward mercilessly, addressing the spirit that approached him for help.

When the Dream Fog appeared in a densely populated area, the number of spirits would naturally be high. Ian wasn't idle enough to bring them all back.

'After all, they will be freed automatically when I clear it.'

Step by step, Ian confirmed that he was heading in the right direction by the presence of the spirits.

The more monsters there were, the more spirits there would be, especially in areas with strong monsters.

"Kyuung. Nyeong."

Bokshil, with her fur standing on end, jumped out of Ian's arms. It was her reaction when a monster appeared.

Ian didn't need to move. Bokshil would detect the monsters and return with a system message and experience points.

Originally, the experience points from the prey caught by a summoned creature would be shared, but since Bokshil was max-level and couldn't level up anymore, all the experience points went to Ian.

'This is the legendary max-level rabbit…!'

Less than an hour after entering Southwood, Ian had reached level 7.

At this rate, he would likely break level 10 by the time he cleared the main quest.