A Veteran of Infinite Buffs - Chapter 77

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 77

Had I ever felt so leisurely while playing a game before?
At the very least, I could confidently say this was the first time.
It felt like I was even doing a dopamine detox on the side.
“Oh! There’s a goblin! Can’t we hunt that one too?”
Meanwhile, Chae-rim was the opposite—this was her dopamine.
She wasn’t the type to shy away from killing; rather, she enjoyed it.
Having been confined for so long, her hunger for hunting seemed to have grown even more intense.
“Hmm…”
Besides, this request wasn’t just watching hunts.
It was about hunting directly.
“What level did you say Chae-rim was?”
“48, sir.”
She had a decent level despite never having hunted.
It meant the Eccentric Merchant had even purchased magic stones and absorbed them into Chae-rim.
“What about Strength and Agility? Vitality?”
“Strength is 16, Agility is 5, and Vitality is 10.”
The numbers were much lower than I expected.
I had thought that since she was crafting-oriented, her Strength and Vitality would be raised somewhat, but that wasn’t the case.
“Hmm. What about Wisdom and Luck?”
“Wisdom is 24 and Luck is 88.”
But her Luck was overwhelmingly high.
Even the number 8, which is favored in China, appeared twice.
It was clearly a status that reflected the Eccentric Merchant’s preferences.
It seemed he had set Luck to 88 and didn’t invest any additional magic stones.
“I’m hesitant about this.”
“Please? Whimper.”
Still, I couldn’t bring myself to refuse when she pleaded so brightly.
“They’re just goblins. Kael. Children need to grow strong. Since your bodies are similar in size, it’ll be good training.”
With Tuuram providing support fire, I decided to give conditional approval.
“Fine.”
“Yes!”
In the worst case, she might get hurt, but she wouldn’t die.
The opponent was just a goblin, after all.
Besides, Chae-rim’s Vitality wasn’t low enough to be killed in one hit by a goblin.
“But if it seems dangerous, I’ll step in.”
“Understood!”
“Here. Take it.”
I drew Sumoq and handed the wooden sword to Chae-rim.
“Wow. This wooden sword is Ancient grade? Is it really okay to entrust something so precious to me?”
She was the kind of child who could craft Legendary grade items from the start.
It was almost amusing to see her so delighted over an Ancient grade weapon.
“It’s fine. This one is a Mythic grade weapon.”
“Wow, this is Mythic grade…. Will the day come when I can also craft Mythic grade items?”
“Of course. If you raise your Luck stat to three digits, eventually you will.”
“Okay. I’ll start raising my Luck now.”
But Chae-rim’s true strength would manifest not through Luck, but through her other stats.
Just like Eternity, Immortality would be an absolutely tremendous benefit as well.
“Let’s think about that later and focus on the goblins for now, shall we?”
“Yes!”
Chae-rim would be facing a single goblin.
Not a bad opponent for her first time.
Moreover, the weapon’s performance was so overwhelming against a goblin that a single strike to a vital point would end the fight.
“Kyieek!”
Besides, the goblin was too wary of me to attempt an escape.
“Hyah!”
Chae-rim charged forward with courage.
And she swung the wooden sword with all her might.
Whoosh!
The wooden sword cut through the air beautifully.
Since Chae-rim had likely never even struck a practice dummy before, this outcome was entirely predictable.
“Oh!”
The goblin, watching the wooden sword slice through empty air, checked my expression instead of counterattacking.
It glanced backward, eyeing Tuuram, who was blocking its escape route.
Cunning, as one might expect.
Yet there was a reason beginners could hunt goblins.
“Yah!”
It was a matter of physical capability.
Cunning aside, in a fight between evenly matched opponents, such minor differences could create a significant gap.
Crack!
While the goblin was distracted, Chae-rim’s wooden sword, swung with all her strength, struck the goblin’s crown.
And the wooden sword’s attack power was such that any solid hit would inflict substantial damage.
“Gack!”
“I hit it!”
“Good. Keep pressing the advantage.”
“Yes!”
Crack! Crack!
Now that Chae-rim had gotten the hang of it, her attacks landed consecutively on the goblin.
One more strike to the crown of its head would have ended the fight, but since she had distributed her attacks across its shoulders and legs, it took two.
Thud!
The goblin fell.
“Did you see? I defeated the goblin!”
“Good. Well done. Next time, try striking the same spot you hit before. It’s more effective.”
“I see. Strike the same spot again. I’ll remember that.”
“Of course, your current method wasn’t bad either. Attacking the legs limits its evasion, and attacking the shoulders restricts its counterattacks.”
My advice might not reach Chae-rim, whose mind was flooded with dopamine.
But for me, watching her joy was satisfaction enough.
I wouldn’t have her fight anything truly dangerous anyway.
“Can I defeat more goblins?”
“Yes. Hunt them whenever you encounter them.”
“This is thrilling!”
The village was drawing steadily closer, and the monsters we encountered grew progressively weaker.
After all, only the weak monsters that lost in the struggle for survival inhabited the area around Beginner Village.
Moreover, the users and NPCs belonging to the village hunted monsters relentlessly, making the environment even safer.
“Hyah!”
“Screech!”
“Well done.”
Chae-rim’s skill with her weapon had improved.
Now her wooden sword no longer missed its mark.
Her level wouldn’t rise, but this kind of practical training would become invaluable experience.
I had been wary of possible retaliation from the Eccentric Merchant, but the users we encountered kept their distance upon seeing me and Tuuram.
This was how it should be.
They understood that entangling with high-level users only brought loss.

And so we arrived at the village without incident.
“You’ve been moving around a lot. Are you hungry?”
“Yes. Can we go eat?”
“Not yet. Bear with me a little longer. We’re heading to Liam.”
“What is Liam?”
“It’s another Beginner Village. For Korean players, Liam is the Beginner Village. You know those older sisters who visited you often? You’ll see them again in Liam later.”
“I like the older sisters!”
Cha Eun-kyung and Baek Seo-hyun—or as they were known here, Eun-nyang and Bella—had already left quite an impression on Chae-rim.
They visited regularly to check on her, always bringing gifts, and each in their own way had built rapport with her.
Cha Eun-kyung, fluent in Chinese, had surprisingly engaged Chae-rim in lengthy conversations, while Baek Seo-hyun brought fascinating items to show her, sparking her curiosity.
“Right? Let’s go now.”
“Okay!”
We had been sustaining ourselves with dried meat and water throughout the journey, so stamina posed no problem.
Buffs don’t lie.
Stamina recovery speed had always been the right choice.
“Tuuram. I’m sorry, but you need to head back. You don’t have an ID.”
“It doesn’t matter. Right now, I want to hunt properly.”
Even this brief parting was good news.
Tuuram’s declaration to hunt meant he’d bring back more Ancient-grade meat.
“Alright.”
I moved to a spot out of sight and unsummoned Tuuram, then returned to Liam with Chae-rim.

* * *

“Welcome back to Liam, Kael. And little stranger.”
“Hello, Teleport Mage.”
Without any prior instruction, Chae-rim greeted the unfamiliar Teleport Mage with natural courtesy.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
I offered a brief greeting to the mage as well before stepping out of Liam City Hall.
The atmosphere of Liam was distinctly different.
More vibrant, more alive—and layered with concerned glances directed at the sight of me traveling with a child.
“Is the wooden sword not heavy?”
It couldn’t be helped; she was dragging along a wooden sword nearly as long as she was tall, strapped across her back.
“It’s not heavy. I just wish I’d grown taller faster.”
“Don’t worry about your height. You’ll definitely grow.”
Chae-rim’s diet was already well-established.
She could eat whatever she wanted, but I planned to supplement her meals with ingredients that would aid her growth.
Notably, minors couldn’t customize their characters, but their physical growth was reflected immediately—so before long, the wooden sword wouldn’t drag anymore.
“Let’s shower first when we arrive, then eat.”
“Okay.”
We arrived at the Light and Salt Inn and finally washed away the dust.
Chae-rim seemed to love the private hot spring.
Watching her delight in the warm water stirred something peculiar in me.
“This is delicious too!”
She was equally satisfied with the meal.
The town’s atmosphere suited us well, so Liam was genuinely comfortable.
And then we moved to our next destination.
“What are we doing this time?”
“Shopping?”
“Shopping?”
“Yeah. I’m really looking forward to it.”
I could have rested leisurely at the inn, but today was the first day after server maintenance ended.
In-game, a hundred days had passed.
So I planned to visit the Russell Merchant Company for the first time in a while.
With supply and demand at their peak today, I expected to make some decent deals.
“The path is beautiful.”
“Right? The road to the Eastern Forest is worth seeing too.”
Our pace was slow.
Chae-rim needed time to analyze the floor decorations along the way.
“See this? The skill required to carve stone so smoothly is incredible.”
“Really?”
“Yes. It was done entirely by hand.”
Chae-rim’s enthusiasm was even higher than during hunts.
Creating things truly was what she enjoyed most.
This way, I can establish a proper framework.
I’ll support them by maintaining their status and health through hunting, while enabling self-actualization through crafting activities.
Since moderation is always best, I’ll make sure not to overdo it.
“Indeed, there are far more than usual. Chae-rim, do you see those merchant carriages over there?”
“Huh? Wow! There are so many!”
It was quite a spectacle, I had to admit.
The East Forest Marketplace was far larger in scale than a row of food trucks.
“See that largest carriage among them, the one with the yellow emblem? The owner of that merchant company is someone I know.”
“Really? I’ve never seen a merchant carriage this large before.”
She was right.
Even the carriage the Eccentric Merchant had pulled wasn’t this impressive.
And the Russell Merchant Company I’d encountered before certainly wasn’t operating at this scale.
The most reasonable assumption was that they’d expanded their operations by selling Golden Fox byproducts.
“Welcome. Has Silverpenn arrived today?”
“Huh? Who are you asking about Silverpenn—”
At that moment, a familiar shout erupted from the adjacent tent.
“Out of the way!”
Followed by hurried footsteps.
“Kael! It’s been so long! I’ve been waiting for you!”
The source of those footsteps was Silverpenn.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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