Chapter 141: Not Too Hard

Atlas scanned his surroundings, realizing he was momentarily safe. Relief washed over him as he sank to the ground, gasping for breath. Slowly, his wounds began to knit themselves back together, the healing process taking hold as he rested. Sёarch* The Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

'I'll stay here for a while before moving on,' he thought while scanning his surroundings and saw nothing or no one.

The moons above shone bright, lighting up the world below. Atlas took some time to rest on the bank of the lake. While doing this, the Blood Bat covered him with one of its wings while guarding the area.

Atlas shook his head before sitting up and admiring the peaceful water as the dark clouds above covered the world in darkness. While sitting there, he started stroking the Blood Bat, who started chirping in happiness as it nudged against his body.

Then he stood up and stretched his body, only to feel the lingering pain from the previous fight, 'I should head for the Pytharis City and tell the guild that the caravan was slaughtered,' Atlas thought while watching the lake.

He noticed something swimming toward him, which alarmed him. He quickly slapped the Blood Bat's back, ordering, "Fly girl! A monster is coming!"

The creature took to the sky, and a giant crocodile burst from the water, causing Atlas to catch the monster's jaws before they could snap shut on him. His arms strained as the beast tried to bite him.

'Why am I holding the jaws of a monster open!' he internally panicked.

He gagged at the horrible breath but soon started to panic as the force of the crocodile's jaws slowly won their fight. That's when the Blood Bat fell upon the monster's back and began attacking it, allowing him to replace one of his hands with a foot.

'Here we go,' he thought with a big smile.

Once Atlas did that, he aimed his free hand down the monster's throat and cast Void Blast, which instantly caused the crocodile to let him go as it thrashed around in pain. He looked at the bat and shouted, "Get off its back!"

The Dungeon Monster listened as Atlas cast Void Bomb at the dying monster just as another crocodile appeared, allowing him to scan it before the spell erupted.

[Razorback Crocodile]

[Rank: C - 500 Exp]

[Ambush monsters - Don't go near large lakes, or you may become its dinner]

'Nearly experienced that,' Atlas thought as an explosion erupted, causing him to fly.

The Blood Bat screeched before grabbing him mid-air and soaring over the lake as more Razorbacks appeared. Atlas climbed onto the bat's back while thanking the monster by stroking it.

While sitting there, he checked his status to see how many levels he had gained due to the chaos ambush.

[Level Up: 140→144]

[Experience: 2480/5000]

[Experience Gained: 20400]

[Health: 1148→1254(200)]

[Mana: 5104→5538(1000)]

[Strength: 1298→1402(100)]

[Stamina: 1610→1716(250)]

[Charisma: 572→604]

[Intelligence: 1028→1140]

[Core Rank: Apprentice Mid→High]

[Core Points: 2560/50000]

[Core Points Gained: 8240]

'Nice, it's still increasing, but I do have to fight even more or find stronger monsters,' Atlas thought while the Blood Bat flew over the lake.

Soon, they reached a bustling trade road lined with dozens of caravans and guarded by Achaemenid patrols. Atlas directed the Blood Bat to fly a mile from the road, ensuring a safe distance.

Once they were clear, he signaled for the bat to descend so he could approach the road on foot. As the monster hit the ground, Atlas thanked it for its help before dismissing it and moving it back to the Dungeon Realm.

When the Blood Bat was gone, Atlas slapped his forehead, 'I forgot to withdraw the gold coins back at the city,' he thought.

Atlas chuckled and reminded himself to pick it up when he reached the next city, his destination. After walking for about ten minutes, he arrived at the road and encountered a small group of students engaged in activities nearby.

"Are they on a school trip? Who knows," he shrugged before continuing his journey toward the distant city.

While making his way there, Atlas spotted small homesteads surrounded by farmlands that stretched in all directions and lit up by the silver light of Zahidul, causing him to think, 'Nowhere to hide if the empire finds me.'

It took him half an hour to reach the city gates, where he was made to pay a silver coin to enter because the mayor had locked down the place due to an incoming Rank A monster wave.

Atlas gulped but decided to leave the city before it arrived. He made his way through the packed streets, where people had panicked expressions. It took him ten minutes to find the Adventurers Guild, which he entered only to find empty.

He glanced around and noticed a woman sitting behind the counter, which he approached and spoke, ''Hello. How do I report that my quest giver was killed during a monster attack?''

The receptionist looked down at him with a raised eyebrow, ''What do you mean, young man? This is a serious incident if what you say is true.''

Atlas nodded, ''It is. Monsters that ambushed us while we were camping for the night. A powerful Mountain Troll forced me to escape into the surrounding woods before the Wendigo's could swarm me,'' he revealed.

When the receptionist heard this, her expression went from suspicious to concerned as she spoke, ''Can I see your Adventurer's Card, please? I want to get the quest's name and void it on your account until the guild can investigate.''

"Alright, can I continue on my way? I need to reach the Greenskin Confederation," Atlas asked in a curious tone.

The woman smiled reassuringly and nodded. "Yes, you're free to go, young adventurer, as there have been similar reports all along the trade road."

After that, Atlas looked for some quests on the board before leaving and found three bandit-hunting and three goblin ones that needed destruction. He took five quests to the guild receptionist to register them to his adventurer card.

She was shocked but asked concernedly, ''This is a dangerous choice, young man. The bandits are ruthless and will show you no mercy if captured.''

''I'll be fine,'' Archer reassured the woman. ''I'm not a weak adventurer and must do my rank-up test.''

The woman nodded in understanding and took his Adventurers Card before registering the quests to his card before he left the guild. Atlas looked at the five quest papers to see what ones to do first.

[Bandit Hunt: Deal with the outlaws plaguing Elysion Harbor Town on the Rahma River to the north - Reward: Three gold coins - Proof: Any identification of the bandits]

[Bandit Hunt: Wipe out the bandits raiding areas around Meqshah Port city - Reward: Four gold coins - Proof: Any identification of the bandits]

[Bandit Hunt: Kill all the Achaemenidians that rebelled against the province governor and are terrorizing the town of Hamaitan in the north - Reward: Five gold coins and a favor from the governor - Proof: Head of the rebel commander Silas]

'Not too hard,' Atlas pondered. 'I can use my monsters to ambush them at night once I find their camps.'

Afterward, he checked the two remaining quests he could on the way north.

[Destroy the Goblin Nest in the hills surrounding Pytharis City - Reward: One gold coin - Proof: Goblin ears]

[Defend the village south of the town of Zunikha from goblin and orc raids - Reward: A free mount and forty silver - Proof: Guild Token from the village leader]

Following that, he decided to do the first goblin quest near the city he was in. Atlas headed for the northern gate, passed through it, and saw the hills stretching in the distance.

Atlas got excited to kill some goblins and prepared everything, including the bombs he decided to use, as he made his way to the first hill while summoning the Voidstalkers before ordering them to find the goblins.

The tiny Trodons scampered off, chirping excitedly as they disappeared. Ten minutes later, one of the mischievous creatures returned, leading a group of five goblins straight toward Atlas.

He couldn't help but chuckle at the sight. The Voidstalker would taunt the goblins by stopping just long enough to tease them, then dart away again. As the green-skinned monsters approached, Atlas raised his hand and cast several Void Arrows.

The glowing blue projectiles whistled through the air, striking the goblins with deadly precision. They crumpled to the ground, lifeless. The Voidstalkers immediately pounced on the fallen bodies, feasting without hesitation.

Atlas watched the little dinosaurs eat the goblins until the five black Monster Cores and five pairs of ears were left behind. He stored them all in his Dimensional Storage before following the Voidstalkers.

They led him to an old mine walled off by the empire, but the creatures led him to an opening where the goblins were coming and going. Atlas looked at this with a raised eyebrow and knew the nest was somewhere inside.

Atlas approached the mine entrance, where rusted carts and discarded tools littered the ground. Gripping his swords tightly, he cautiously stepped inside. The air was thick with dust, but no goblins were in sight.

He pressed on through the tunnel, his Voidstalkers leading the way, darting ahead like silent hurricanes. Soon, the eerie silence was broken by the unmistakable sounds of goblin shrieks and panicked cries.

The Voidstalkers had already begun their assault, tearing through the goblin nest in a frenzied feeding. The air echoed with chaos as Atlas followed the path of destruction.

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