Chapter 29

"Here, this is the pocket watch."

The next day, I received the watch from Salome at the reception.

"Thank you, now I can check the time while hunting."

It was a sturdy pocket watch, and it wasn't cheap. I put it in my pocket.

"It's good to be mindful of time. Especially with you, Tim, you tend to push yourself too hard if left unchecked."

Salome's data probably records the time I spend in the dungeon. From the looks of it, I'll probably keep being reminded to take proper breaks.

"No, I'll make sure to take proper breaks."

Yesterday, Mina and Olive also subtly reminded me about it. It seems that for adventurers, taking breaks is important, and overexertion can take a toll on the body without you realizing it.

"Thanks to a good night's rest, I feel great today."

It might be a mental thing, but I feel lighter and can swing my arms more easily than the day before.

As I was showing how good I felt with my whole body, Salome put a finger to her lips and tilted her head.

"Come to think of it, you said you had a good rest yesterday..."

Her eyes, full of interest, fixed on me.

"How exactly did you rest?"

"W-well..."

She had a smile on her face, but it seemed she was suspicious of me.

"If you really rested, you can tell me, right? Right?"

She leaned in, and our eyes met at close range. After intense questioning, I ended up confessing about spending time with Mina and Olive.

"Huh? You're kidding...?"

While hunting on the second floor and using the pocket watch to keep track of time, something unusual happened. After a few hours of hunting, I had gotten used to the effects of 'Speed Up' and my movements.

"Here it is..."

When the dead Kobold's body disappeared, a 'Drop Box' appeared in front of me.

"I had a hunch, but it seems my luck was just right, huh?"

Checking my status screen, my current 'Luck' is 270 + 45. So, it's safe to assume that the condition for a Drop Box to appear is a Luck of at least 300.

"But... why haven't there been any reports of Drop Boxes from deeper floors?"

Among Yugo and the others, Olive has a Luck of 170. High-ranking adventurers would have stats far surpassing hers, so there should be people with a Luck of over 300.

"Anyway, I should open it first..."

If left for too long, the Drop Box would be absorbed by the dungeon. I hurriedly opened it...

'Fire Arrow Scroll'

Inside was a scroll that could cast a spell once.

"Well, it's not bad..."

This item isn't very popular. The reason is...

"Regular adventurers who can use skills don't need it, and the power drops if your magic is low, so front-liners don't use it."

It costs 5 silver coins at the Adventurer's Guild, so it's more cost-effective to buy a mana potion and cast the spell yourself.

"Anyway, I'm getting used to the movements, so I'll go down to the third floor to test it out..."

I heard that the contents of Drop Boxes from weak monsters are limited. I decided to go down to find a stronger monster's Drop Box.

"Phew, in the end, only one appeared today..."

After that, I hunted on the third floor, but I arrived at a normal time, so I couldn't kill many monsters.

Still, I fought and defeated about 100 Warrior Kobolds and Warrior Goblins. According to Salome's statistics, it's not unusual for a Drop Box to appear once, but...

"Good work today."

I handed over the scroll I got from the Drop Box.

"Oh!? Did a Drop Box appear?"

"Yes, a Kobold dropped it while I was hunting on the second floor."

Usually, it's just magic stones, so Salome was interested.

"Congratulations. So, the rumor that they don't drop solo was false, it seems."

"Probably..."

After all, getting a Luck of over 300 is quite a stretch.

"By the way, there's another unconfirmed rumor about Drop Boxes."

While collecting the magic stones and the scroll, Salome started talking.

"Apparently, some monsters are more likely to drop Drop Boxes, while others are less likely."

"Really?"

"Goblins and Kobolds are more likely to drop Drop Boxes, but the items inside aren't that great. However, as you go deeper, the frequency of Drop Boxes decreases, but the items inside are often better."

Based on this information, it's natural to assume that the Kobolds on the second floor started dropping Drop Boxes at a Luck of 300.

How much Luck is needed to drop a Drop Box on the third floor...

Name: Tim

Age: 16

Occupation: Loafer Level 12

Strength: 200

Agility: 105

Stamina: 166

Magic: 224

Spirit: 202

Dexterity: 171

Luck: 300 + 60

Status Points: 0

Skill Points: 309

Unique Skills: 'Status Manipulation'

Skills: 'Swordsmanship Level 6', 'Bash Level 6', 'Healing Level 6', 'Skill Point Increase Level 5', 'Status Point Increase Level 5', 'Experience Gain Increase Level 5', 'Light', 'Trap Detection Level 5', 'Trap Disarm Level 5', 'Backstep Level 5', 'Item Appraisal Level 5', 'Dagger Mastery Level 5', 'Fire Arrow Level 6', 'Ice Arrow Level 6', 'Wind Arrow Level 6', 'Lock Shot Level 6', 'Meditation Level 6', 'Wall Level 6', 'Burst Level 6', 'Magic Focus Level 6', 'Bless Level 6', 'Cure Level 6', 'High Healing Level 6', 'Safety Wall Level 6', 'Speed Up Level 6', 'Stamina Up Level 6'

I stared at my status screen, deep in thought.