The Rice-Eating Hero’s Capitalist Streaming - Chapter 3
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Capitalist Streaming of a Freeloading Hero
Episode 3
The Constellation’s Game [Lyka]
Actually, during the week it took me to decide to enter the Gate, I had quite a lot of thoughts.
It wasn’t because I was afraid of the Gate itself.
There was no way I could feel reluctant about Gates I had entered countless times.
However, unlike the beta version where you return to the beginning the moment you die, death here means actual death.
So… I didn’t want to die.
If it had been before meeting my family again, I would have had no attachment to life, but human hearts seemed truly fickle.
“Just in case, son.”
“Yes, father.”
“I hope you won’t go anywhere near the Gate.”
“…”
Nevertheless, the reason I chose the Gate was ultimately because of money.
Through my parents’ conversation by chance, I learned that our family’s financial situation was more serious than I thought.
“Honey. Now that Geonyul is back… shouldn’t we move?”
“I was just thinking about that. There’s no need to keep staying here paying these expensive interest rates.”
With monthly loan interest alone costing hundreds of thousands of won, my parents’ income seemed barely enough to cover even that interest.
So with at least 1 billion won in loans, they were continuously eating into money for living expenses.
Even if we sold the house, it wouldn’t be enough to pay off all the loans, and even if we did sell, it wasn’t easy to decide to move because of father’s convenience store.
My parents described it as just being a little difficult, but from my perspective, it wasn’t just that level.
If I had returned just a little later, our family would have been out on the streets.
So to clear my unfilial debt, getting a decent job wouldn’t be enough.
I realized I needed more money than I thought.
‘In the end… the Gate is the answer.’
So after deciding to enter the Gate, I made systematic plans.
My weapon was ultimately my experience from over a thousand rounds that others didn’t have.
Using that to earn as many Lyka Points (LP) as possible was the only way I could make big money.
‘I just need to not overdo it. While finding ways to make as much money as possible.’
So I entered the Gate solely to make money.
“Hehe, new adventurers are always welcome. So, you said your name was Dave?”
For me, the safety of my family I met after ten thousand years was more important than saving the world.
Ding-!
[You have encountered ‘Mordini’, the village chief of ‘Bereshit’.]
[Conditions have been met.]
[Quest cleared.]
“Until you’re ready to set off on your adventure, feel free to rest comfortably in this Bereshit.”
[As a quest completion reward, you have obtained an ‘Apprentice Hero’s Equipment Box’.]
And no matter how much of a trash-tier hero I am, things would be a bit different within the ‘Island of Beginnings’.
Someone like me who has raised characters over a thousand times couldn’t exist on Earth, the official server.
* * *
Usually, players on the Earth server are said to make tremendous preparations before entering this Gate.
Since this Gate is a place you have to enter risking your life…
Not only do they spend money to set up equipment, but they also receive all kinds of training in virtual simulation spaces before attempting to enter the Gate.
So for those ‘ordinary’ aspiring Hunters, something like an [Apprentice Hero’s Equipment Box] was meaningless.
Since most people spend at least tens of millions of won to fully set up with tier 2-3 equipment before entering…
There was no point in caring about tier 1 supply items.
But naturally, I couldn’t do that.
I really had no choice but to enter the Gate completely broke.
For me, this apprentice hero’s equipment box… was precious capital I couldn’t do without.
[You have opened the ‘Apprentice Hero’s Equipment Box’.]
[You can choose one of three pieces of equipment.]
[A. Apprentice Adventurer’s Sword]
[B. Apprentice Mage’s Staff]
[C. Apprentice Hunter’s Bow]
Therefore, I needed to be extremely careful about what to choose from the basic equipment.
I had to earn as much money as possible with the least maintenance costs.
“Hmm.”
Well, in that context, first I’ll pass on the ‘Apprentice Hunter’s Bow’.
This is a weapon I shouldn’t choose in this life.
‘Unless my ancestors are buying me arrows.’
I heard that aspiring Hunters prefer it a lot because you can hunt with low risk from a distance…
But arrow costs in Lyka are never trivial.
Moreover, the higher level you grow, the more burdensome those costs become.
Arrows, like other equipment, need to be high tier to be effective.
Tier 5 or higher arrows cost over ten million won for a pack of 100.
So.
Then what’s the correct answer here…?
Ding-!
[You have selected the ‘Apprentice Mage’s Staff’.]
It was the staff.
[You obtain the corresponding item.]
Isn’t mage a class that costs a lot of money?
Of course it is.
In some ways, it requires even more money than an archer.
So absolutely, I shouldn’t be a mage either.
But if you ask why I chose the staff…
[You have sold the ‘Apprentice Mage’s Staff’.]
Because this sells for the most.
[You have obtained 15LP.]
This 15LP will be the seed money that becomes the foundation of my growth.
‘Good. The price is the same as the beta version too.’
If someone had seen me freeloading from the basic equipment, they would have shaken their head first.
Since without equipment you can’t hunt, and without hunting you can’t make money…
To buy similar level equipment again, you’d have to pay an even higher price.
So no matter how broke you are, selling this…
From a general perspective, it’s the right thing to do.
But who am I?
I’m a ‘Island of Beginnings’ veteran.
I had a way to utilize this 15LP seed money to the extreme.
After selling the staff, the place I headed to was the blacksmith on the outskirts of the village.
“An adventurer I haven’t seen before! What brings you here?”
But this isn’t a blacksmith that ordinary players use.
“What? You came to buy what?”
This is a blacksmith that specializes in selling farming tools.
I was planning to get the best cost-effective weapon here.
“Hmm, this is the first time an adventurer has bought a shovel… but there’s nothing I can’t sell.”
[You have purchased a ‘Sturdy Iron Shovel’.]
“Yes! This one has really good quality.”
This ‘Sturdy Iron Shovel’ naturally has less attack power than the Apprentice Adventurer’s Sword.
But it has 3 times the durability and is even lighter in weight…
And the price is only 1/3 of a staff!
[You have paid 5LP.]
If something like this exists and you don’t sell weapons from the box…
Wouldn’t that mean starting with a loss of over 10LP from the beginning?
Of course, it might hurt my dignity as a hero a bit, but that doesn’t put food on the table.
‘So now what’s left…’
I had already decided what to buy with the remaining money.
Potions?
No way.
A freeloading hero doesn’t drink potions.
Those who hunt while chugging potions aren’t ready to make money in the first place.
So what I bought by scraping together all my remaining money was the minimum safety device for survival.
[You have purchased ‘Bereshit Return Scroll’.]
[You have paid 10LP.]
Since anything can happen inside a Gate, having one life insurance policy is essential.
‘Good. Now I’m ready to hunt.’
Finally, it’s time to begin.
I’m ready to go to work.
‘Starting with Bereshit Courtyard.’
And so I headed to my first hunting ground—no, workplace—since my return.
* * *
During my time with the fairy, I had experienced countless classes.
Among them was naturally the ‘Architect’ class.
And the first weapon I received from the Guild when I changed to Architect was a ‘shovel’.
-You want me to fight… with this?
-Of course, a shovel is actually quite an excellent weapon.
There were even combat skills among the early Architect class skills that utilized the shovel as a weapon.
It felt like a mix of swordsmanship and shield techniques…
Growl-!
Especially against these brutish monsters that bare their teeth without thinking, it was an excellent skill.
Of course, I don’t have that skill now…
But if I perfectly recreate the movements, I can draw out about 80% of the power of actually using the skill.
Just like this.
Thunk-
First, I raise the shovel vertically and block with a disciplined stance.
[You have perfectly defended against Starve Dog’s attack.]
[Damage is reduced by 99%.]
Then I deliver a proper lesson to the head of the creature that’s dazed after smashing its snout against the iron shovel…
Crack-!
[You have dealt critical damage to Starve Dog!]
[Starve Dog has entered a stunned state.]
By shoving the shovel straight into the mouth of the stunned creature, I can cleanly finish the battle.
[You have dealt critical damage to Starve Dog!]
[You have successfully defeated Starve Dog!]
If it had been any other weapon instead of a shovel, I wouldn’t have been able to handle this creature so easily.
This isn’t rationalization—it’s true.
Among early equipment, there’s no other weapon that allows such free transition between offense and defense except the shovel.
If I had used a sword, I would have been on the verge of death right after killing one.
If I got properly bitten by this thing even once, my health would be cut in half immediately.
‘Could I have… dodged everything while fighting?’
But why would a monster in front of the village be so strong?
I came looking for the strongest guy in this area.
The Starve Dog, the newbie-bullying boss of the courtyard… was actually a level 4 monster.
Isn’t it common sense that a level 1 would be near death if bitten by a level 4 beast?
[You have successfully hunted a monster.]
[You gain experience points.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have reached level 2.]
But if you ask why I’m pushing myself from the start when I said I’d play it safe…
[You have succeeded in a difficult challenge.]
[Conditions have been met.]
It’s to obtain a title.
[You have acquired the ‘Giant Slayer (Hero)’ title.]
Killing a Starve Dog at level 1 is the easiest way to get this title.
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Giant Slayer
Category: Title
Tier: 5
Grade: Hero
* Equipped Effect
When facing enemies of higher level than yourself, all combat stats increase by 30.
* Passive Effect
Attack power increases by an additional 15%.
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The acquisition condition for this title is ‘defeating an enemy with all stats more than twice as high’…
So the difficulty of obtaining it increases exponentially as your level gets higher.
It’s a tier 5 hero-grade title—of course it wouldn’t be easy to get.
This means it’s impossible to get it easily unless it’s now.
“Hmm.”
Thoroughly collecting all these spec upgrades that don’t cost money is also…
An important quality of a freeloading hero, isn’t it?
‘Of course it is.’
Anyway, since I smoothly achieved my first goal, it somewhat covered for my inferior equipment compared to others.
[You are entering combat with a high-level enemy.]
[‘Giant Slayer’ title effect activates.]
[Your stats increase.]
[Combat power increased by 85.]
[Current combat power: 137]
Although conditional, the 30 to all stats from the equipped effect was almost equivalent to wearing a full set of tier 2 equipment.
[You have dealt critical damage to Starve Dog!]
Seeing the mutt unable to resist after one shovel strike, the performance is definitely solid.
No matter how precisely my attack targeted weak points, it’s quite difficult for a level 2 to one-shot a level 4.
[You have successfully defeated Starve Dog!]
Anyway, thanks to this, my hunting speed increased considerably, and after killing about two more, loot dropped as well.
[You obtain loot from ‘Starve Dog’.]
Of course, such a shabby creature wouldn’t drop anything valuable…
[You have obtained ‘Tough Meat Chunk’ item.]
But as they say, many a little makes a mickle—if I process and sell this properly, I can earn about 0.1LP.
Since the exchange rate for 1LP is roughly 10,000 won, this is worth a whopping 1,000 won.
‘Wait, hold on. This is worth 1,000 won?’
When I played the beta version, this was actually junk I wouldn’t even bother picking up…
The fishy-smelling chunk of meat suddenly started feeling precious.
[You have dealt critical damage to Starve Dog!]
[You have successfully defeated Starve Dog!]
Moreover, since I got excited and hunted everything in sight, even an item with less than 20% drop rate fell.
[You have obtained ‘Small Beast Bone Fragment’ item.]
This is just junk that the General Store uncle will buy for a whopping 0.3LP if I bring it as is.
“Nice.”
It feels like it’s been about seven thousand years since I last bent over to pick up this item, but today it feels so precious.
I never had thoughts like this in the beta version…
It felt like finding an Americano exchange coupon on the street.
[You have successfully defeated Starve Dog!]
[‘Tough Meat Chunk’ item obtained.]
[‘Small Beast’s Torn Hide’ item obtained.]
Who knew simple hunting grind could actually be this fun.
Maybe my true talent was actually in freeloading?
Thwack-
Kiiing-!
While I was having such thoughts…
[‘Corroded Bone Accessory’ item obtained.]
The one I just killed dropped an unexpected chicken coupon.
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Corroded Bone Accessory
Category: Equipment – Necklace
Level Requirement: 1
Grade: Normal
Tier: 1T
Durability: 20 / 20
Main Stats
Attack Power +2
An old accessory made from bone fragments of a starving beast.
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An exclamation burst out naturally…
‘Insane.’
Without realizing it, my pupils dilated and my whole body shivered with excitement.
I could probably get around 2.3LP for this.
With this, I could even afford boneless fried chicken?
Who knew farming one tier 1 accessory would trigger this much dopamine…
Indeed, everything seems to depend on one’s mindset.
[‘Corroded Bone Accessory’ item obtained.]
But for now, I need to equip it first.
[‘Corroded Bone Accessory’ item equipped.]
[Stats increased.]
[Combat Power increased by 4.]
[Current Combat Power: 141]
Since I’m at a level where every single stat is quite precious.
Crack-!
[You have dealt critical damage to Starve Dog!]
Getting so excited massacring these mutts, before I knew it my level had gone up again.
[Experience gained.]
[Level increased.]
[You have reached Level 3.]
If I raise just one more level, I won’t be able to hunt here anymore.
Once I become the same level as Starve Dog, the highest level monster in the front yard, I won’t be able to receive the ‘Giant Slayer’ effect anymore.
So I should move to ‘The Starting Forest’ now.
Thinking of the violent reindeer living there, I can feel myself naturally salivating.
‘Was it Wild Reindeer? The one that dropped antler velvet.’
Violent reindeer drops a medicinal ingredient called ‘antler velvet’ at a very low probability.
And this is worth a whopping… 13LP on the market.
That means omakase.
“Wow.”
Hunting suddenly became so much more fun.
I guess I’ll have to cancel what I said about just earning lunch money and leaving.
Before I knew it, my steps were heading toward The Starting Forest.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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