Using the <Analyzing Eye> was the first thing Klaus did when he saw the monsters in the crack above the gateway to the mountain.

[Monster: Scorpion-Spider

Level: 13 | Attribute: Poison | Nature: Primal

HP: 200 | MP: 0

Attack: 12 | Defense: 12 | Speed: 20

Strength: 9 | Wisdom: 2 | Resistance: 10

This creature has Resistance to Poison Spells.]

“Shit, those monsters are strong. You said there are a few dozen, right?” Klaus asked the woman-smith.

“Yes, but I couldn’t get past where we are now. Those things are way too scary for me…” She replied.

They were both hiding behind a fallen tree trunk.

Upon hearing Therkara’s reply, Klaus looked at her with a confused face. The blacksmith-woman didn’t look like a damsel in distress, not even remotely, to say the least. Her strong arm, thick legs, and height were very similar to what one would expect a warrior’s appearance to be.

Such was the novice’s doubt about this fear, even with such strength, that he soon felt compelled to ask about it.

“Aren’t you strong? I mean, to me you looked very skilled while chasing me through the forest, and when you caught up with me you didn’t even look tired, so I’m asking.”

“It’s a fair question, but I’m afraid to say that I’m not as strong as I look. I can obviously run quite a bit, but only because I’ve trained my breath a lot since I was a child, blowing air fans.” Therkara didn’t seem bothered to answer.

“And your muscles are dense from using the hammer for forging, Am I right? All right, now I understand your reason.”

Although the status screen of the blacksmith lady showed that most of her physical attributes were good for someone level eight, Klaus did not want to retort with her or force her to fight.

“Anyway, you’ll need to come in with me, because I don’t know the place.” Klaus continued.

The woman didn’t even seem hesitant at his demand. “Of course, I will go in with you, but first we have to think of a way to deal with those Scorpion-Spiders that are at the entrance.”

“You’re right, but give me a minute and I’ll figure it out,” Klaus said and slid his finger in the air.

In the vision of the Blacksmith-lady, Klaus began moving his fingers in the air and looking at the ground as if he was actually thinking. However, Klaus was tinkering with the game’s interface, the system.

‘All I have in my inventory is…’

[Player Inventory.

– Huko arrows (4x).

– Old Bow (x1).

– Old Blue Leather Tunic (x1).𝑶𝓋𝗅𝒩xt.𝗇𝓔t

– Fire Stone I (1x).

– Broken Dagger (1x).

– Wheat Bread (1x).

– Beginner’s Canteen (1x).

– Reinforced Black Feathers (4x).

– Normal Black Feathers (10x).

– Black Vulture Meat (2x)].

Definitely, none of the items in Klaus’ inventory were ideal items to use when entering the home of dozens of Scorpion-Spiders. Still, he didn’t mind facing challenges like that, because the real fun of any MMORPG’s early game is not gradually getting stronger but the thrill of fighting something that is logically above your level.

“All right, I have an idea.” With a serious expression, Klaus looked at the monsters on the wall and stated.

“And what’s your idea?” Therkara asked, frowning.

The black-haired man did not answer at first, seeming too busy with his thoughts.

‘That Rise Online advertisement I saw in Times Square yesterday boasted about the breadth of that game, didn’t it? Time to put that to the test.’ He thought.

Klaus Park removed a few rows of wood from the log beside him with his bare hands. And since he didn’t have any kind of rope, string, or normal twine, he had to be content with touching and plucking some slimy webs from the nearby trees.

[You have just collected 5 ‘Wooden Sticks’].

[You have just collected 9 ‘Spider Webs’.]

Soon after, he clicked on the Normal Black Feathers icon in his inventory, and the feathers appeared out of thin air before him, which made Therkara’s eyes bulge.

“Now, it was time to put it all together.” Klaus uttered.

On the spot, the rookie began to tie two Black Feathers to one end of the webbed stick, and then he clicked on the Fire Stone icon in his inventory. Suddenly, a small, red, almost crystalline-looking stone appeared in the air and fell into the rookie’s right hand.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch! That’s hot!” He expressed and, without thinking, began juggling the stone, which burned whenever it touched his skin.

Therkara Ironstone caught the Fire Stone in the air with his fingertips and said:

“Oh, a Fire Stone! It seems like decades since I’ve seen one. The younger blacksmiths in my village used to use these stones to heat steel. They didn’t know how to balance the temperature the right way, so this was the way we found to help them keep forging at high temperatures but without the fire.”

The blacksmith woman held the red hot stone as if it was something natural.

“Kaizen, you want to make an arrow using this little Fire Stone as a tip, don’t you? But you should know that as soon as this stone touches the gravestone, it will start to burn quickly.”

“That’s not a problem. I’m not going to use that arrow to attack the monsters.” He responded.

Therkara felt like asking about what he was thinking of doing, but there was no time to waste, so she would have to trust his plan.

“All right. Since my skin is used to high temperatures, I will hold the Fire Stone and you will put it together with the rest. Then throw that as fast as you can.” She said straight to the man.

“Okay. On your count, I’ll start.”

It had been a while since Therkara Ironstone had last mounted an arrow; for that reason, her heart was palpitating with excitement. She held tightly the almost pointed shape of Fire Stone and spoke:

“One, two, three… You may begin.”

Klaus was holding the spider web thread by one end, and this helped him to masterfully move that slimy thing around the stick. Thus, he soon reached the Fire Stone part, where he needed to be much faster. The wires began to burn when they came in contact with the Fire Stone, but they were not melted instantly as the novice had imagined.

In the end, Klaus could breathe only when a system warning screen appeared before him.

[Congratulations! You have created your first item, a ‘Flaming Rotten Arrow’].

Not wanting to waste even a second, Klaus Park picked up the arrow shaft and positioned it on the bow string. This arrow was definitely stranger than any made by a novice, so it was to be expected that its flight would be totally crooked and that there wouldn’t even be any stabilization; however, since it would be shot by that Old Bow, it wouldn’t go the right way anyway.

At the moment Klaus released the bowstring, the arrow flew high and to the left, heading in a different direction from where the spiders were.

Just as the blacksmith lady was about to question the archer why he had shot the arrow in that direction, the Flaming Rotten Arrow changed trajectory to the right in mid-air. Then Therkara remembered Klaus’ ability to move the arrows without having to touch them.

Therkara looked at Klaus to congratulate him because if the arrow followed this trajectory, it would certainly hit the Scorpion-spiders. However, Klaus was not looking pleased, in fact, he looked strangely angry.

“Ah, damned bow! Why did you change the fucking trajectory yet again?!” He was swinging the old bow, which looked like it could break at any moment. ‘Damn, why do I have to use my MP for almost everything?’

In a bad mood, Klaus Park used <Telekinesis> to turn the arrow to the path he desired, and since the arrowhead was a Fire Stone, the singular, red glow of this small stone caught the eye in the empty sky.

The five Scorpion-Spiders, who were outside, promptly began to climb down the mountain walls and walk towards the far right of their lair, inside the Cloudy Woods, where the strange glow had fallen.

Poison monsters are usually extremely territorial, and Klaus didn’t even know this when he had the idea to lure them away from the door. He just trusted his instinct and basic logic.

…

Edited by: DrHitsuji

If you want to see original illustrations of Rise Online characters, consider helping me on pa treon: Pa treon.com/NandoFalske

More character images in:

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