0.
Ugh!
A small mythical creature shaped like a pinecone let out a scream. I hit it a few more times with my club until it became completely flat and spat out an item before disappearing.
[“Acquired early stage troll blood.”]
[Item Grade: D Rank]
“Ugh, again.”
Troll blood is junk trash that no one would buy even for one silver coin. But I thought it was such a waste to throw it away, so I put it into a small bottle in my pocket.
‘I guess there won’t be any gems today either.’
The reason why I haven’t been able to leave this beginner hunting ground yet is partly because my level is only 7, but also because sometimes there are gems dropped by low-level monsters which allow me to make a living.
When I kill goblins or slimes, very rarely, items called ‘beginner monster gems’ drop, each worth 1 gold. I usually get those once every five to six months, assuming I hunt at the beginners’ area every day.
Ugh!
[“Acquired early stage troll blood.”]
Sigh!
[“Acquired tears of a beginner green slime.”]
Ugh!
[“Acquired early stage troll blood.”]
Three hours later, all I got were useless trinkets.
‘It’s about time I should head back…’
In three days, it will be six months already. There hasn’t been a single gem from low-level monsters… This doesn’t happen too often, but this time, luck wasn’t on my side. Rent, food expenses, regular weapon purchasing costs due to wear and tear, medical fees if injured… Although there’s always enough money to pay for these things, opportunities to earn money are scarce.
But whose fault could it possibly be? If anyone’s to blame, it’d have to be myself, born without any abilities. Had I possessed even a mediocre skill, I wouldn’t have had to live as a level 7 for twenty-five years.
There are many people like me. In our village alone, there isn’t a single person above level 10. Those with innate talent are actually quite rare; however, there are far more people like me who try hard but never manage to surpass level 10. Even though we live less glamorous lives compared to others.
Ugh!
[“Acquired early stage troll blood.”]
“Eek, ah!”
“Even after hunting all day, entry-level monsters reach their limit eventually. It would be a bit different if I had some skills, but apparently, skills don’t appear until your level reaches 20. Such is the misfortune of having insufficient attributes as a low-level character.
Of course, high-level players must have it easier. Rumor has it that there are some who wander around advanced hunting grounds and underground dungeons like they own the place, such as parties of heroes…although I’ve only heard stories about them and quickly dismissed them from my mind. After all, it’s a world that has nothing to do with someone like me. At least, not directly.
Rustle rustle.
Just as I was considering heading home for the day, I heard a familiar sound. The sound of a troll munching on leaves. Since I stumbled upon it anyway, I figured I might as well take down one more and headed towards its direction, hoping against hope that maybe this particular troll would drop a gemstone.
Although I expected otherwise, I couldn’t bring myself to give up and walked closer, only to find a little troll happily munching away, its humped back exposed. My tired body struggled to lift the club, but I managed to swing it down onto the oblivious troll enjoying its last supper.
Smack!
Crunch!
Thud!
“What the…?”
Unlike other times, when a couple of hits would suffice to end a troll, this time, it didn’t die immediately despite letting out strange sounds. Feeling something off, I paused mid-swing with my club, only to catch the troll turning around and peering at me curiously.
Most beginning-level trolls have tiny bodies and equally small eyes. However, the pair of eyes staring back at me now took up nearly half of its body, and they were bright red instead of the usual green. Its gaze burned fiercely.
“Hold on just a second……”
Telling a monster to hold on for a moment is pointless, but in this case, the troll seemed particularly upset at being interrupted during its mealtime. Enraged, it glared at me, making me feel uneasy.
That kind of troll looked unfamiliar, and I knew right away that it certainly wasn’t an ordinary starting-level monster. Besides, there’s no way a level 7 player like me stands a chance against anything beyond entry-level.
So, I ran.
As soon as I realized it, I turned tail and sprinted along the forest path.
‘Why is there something like that in a beginner’s hunting ground!’
As I dashed with all my strength, I encountered a type of troll I had never seen before. When I casually glanced over my shoulder, I saw a face with closed eyes and a wide grin filled with sharp teeth, revealing fresh blood on its lips. To my horror, I discovered a troll perched on my left shoulder.
“Ah!”
Before I could shake it off, I felt a rush of warmth spreading across my face, neck, and clothes as crimson liquid spurted out of the troll’s mouth.
[You have been afflicted with a rare troll’s curse.]
[Curse Level: S Rank]
[Time Limit: None]
Wiping frantically at my stained face, I noticed a message appearing in front of me. Compared to the sticky scent of the red fluid covering my body, the content of the message was even more horrific.
A curse? What did I just say? Only then did I realize that the harmless-looking critter I tried to smash earlier was none other than a rare troll. Appearing infrequently regardless of whether the hunting ground is classified as entry-level, intermediate, advanced, or elite, defeating it would yield valuable loot. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible for me.
Level 7 adventurers burdened with a D rank curse need to desperately collect funds and hastily visit temples. And now, I am afflicted with an S rank curse with no time limit.
After casting the spell on me, the rare troll disappeared mysteriously. Part of me wondered how much precious loot I would have obtained had I killed it. Nevertheless, I had leisurely thoughts because I hadn’t experienced any pain from the curse.
“Why?”
Normally, curses cause unbearable sensations such as splitting pain, ripping agony, or intense burning. Surprisingly, I remained perfectly fine.
‘Isn’t a rare monster’s curse supposed to lack pain?’
On one hand, finding relief in the absence of suffering, I also felt uncomfortable. Nonetheless, I decided to remain optimistic. No pain is good news. Treatment for an S rank curse requires offering tens of gold coins in temples. With barely enough money to survive daily life, I cannot afford such extravagance.
Suppressing my discomfort, I exited the training field intending to head toward the peaceful town surrounded by spring season and nature. Born and raised in remote areas, I visited countless villages similar to mine, inhabited mainly by low-levelled individuals like me, devoid of major incidents, ignored by thrill-seekers, and radiated peacefulness.
Walking through the streets of the village covered in red cursed substance from the rare troll, surprised gazes followed me everywhere. People probably mistook it for blood.
Entering the deer-themed inn where I lived, Malri, the owner, panicked. She inherited the inn from her parents and is known to chase late-paying guests with knives she keeps in the kitchen. Of course, she never intended to hurt anybody, but holding a knife near the entrance makes anyone hesitant.
“It’s not my blood,” I explained.
Actually, it wasn’t blood—probably residue from the rare troll’s curse.
Malri stared at me, shocked. “Go straight to the temple. That curse might seem okay now, but who knows what happens next with a rare beast’s curse.”
“I can’t afford the cleansing fee…” I confessed. “Lately, I can’t even gather gems.”
She offered, “Let me lend you 5 gold. Wait, 3 gold. Actually, 1 gold.”
Despite feeling grateful and embarrassed simultaneously, I said nothing, causing Malri to reduce the amount further, saying 90 silvers, 70 silvers, and finally 30 silvers, but I stopped her. Trying to sleep, I hoped the torture of the curse wouldn’t come true someday.
Unexpectedly, morning arrived, accompanied by writhing agonizing pain. The typical curse causes feelings like splitting pains, tearing sensations, or burnings throughout the entire body, but the rare troll’s curse delivered everything at once.
If I weren’t surprisingly resilient, I might consider suicide, given the excruciating torment. Hearing my cries, Malri and her husband rushed upstairs, crying alongside their daughters, watching helplessly as I squirmed in despair.
After a long time, as soon as the pain from the rare curse disappeared with the coming of morning, I rushed frantically toward the temple in the center of the village. Even though it was still early, there wasn’t anything that could stop me. The pain inflicted by the tiger’s cursed claws had been terrible.
“Priest! Priest!”
Fortunately, despite the early hour, the Priest opened the door of the temple for me. They were holding brooms in their hands, perhaps they were cleaning.
“What seems to be the problem?”
Seeing my swollen face after staying up all night, the Priest were taken aback in surprise and asked. Without hesitation, I told them what had happened to me.
As the story went on, the expressions of the Priest grew sterner. My heart also became tense with anxiety.
“…Why? How much is the cleansing fee?”
I wondered why they were trying to create such an atmosphere when asking about the cost. However, the Priests shook their heads indicating that this was not their intention.
“A curse of grade S cannot be purified by Priests at our level.”
“Can’t you at least try?”
“There’s no point in wasting sacred power if we know it won’t work.”
With stern but kind faces, the Preists suggested that I should go to the main temple of the big town instead. “At least give it a shot!”
Honestly, hearing the truth from them would have been better. If I left without saying a word and tried to exorcise the curse only to fail due to insufficient abilities, wouldn’t that be worse…
Driven away by these honest yet considerate Preists, I prepared myself with the determination to leave for the Summer Village. What preparation did I make? To flee to the Summer Village immediately. When I heard their words, the excruciating pain of the past few nights made me even think about leaving Spring Village, somewhere I hadn’t visited in my entire life.
“Hey, are you okay going alone?”
Just then, a merchant who came to deliver goods to our village and was heading back to the Summer Village stopped us. Since he knew Malri’s husband well, they managed to get a ride with him for free; however, he asked Malri for a ‘delivery fee’ of 50 silvers.
With a worried expression, I cautiously asked Malri, who looked pitifully small:
“Malri, will you come with me?”
“That’d be hard…”
Is that so… Then, there was no more time to waste. Who knows when the pain from the curse might return. Waving goodbye to the Malri family, who wished me luck, I climbed aboard the carriage and departed along with it.
