Chapter 15: The Amorphophallus Feast

[You have removed the Lizardman Head, decreasing your Stamina stat from 44 to 42 and removing the ‘Coordinated Attack’ skill.]

[You have grafted the Giant Toad Head, increasing your Mental Strength stat from 19 to 24 and gaining the ‘Swarm Hell’ skill.]

[Due to the effect of a critical success, all base Ghoul stats (Strength, Agility, Stamina, Mental Strength) are increased by 5.]

[Excellent Ghoul]

• Level: 12
• Race: Undead
• HP: 420(+50)
• MP: 240(+50)
• Status: Strength 40(+5) / Agility 27(+5) / Stamina 42(+5) / Mental Strength 24(+5)
• Command Cost: 10
• Owned Active Skills

1. Leap Lvl. 5(Command \40 30) – Kick off the ground to leap high.
2. Swarm Hell Lvl. 1(Command \40 30) – Use the long sticky tongue to swallow insect-type monsters below a certain size. Deals 200% increased critical damage to insect-type monsters.

So excited that I forgot my sweat-soaked back, I bounced in place.

“I did it!”

Even though the required Command Power had doubled from 5 to 10, it didn’t matter since the max number of Ghouls I could control was three.

Rather, obtaining the ‘Swarm Hell’ skill, which made hunting Amorphophallus easy, and enjoying the bonus stat increases from the critical success made for an efficiency that couldn’t be beaten.

‘With these stats…’

Clearing the quest would be a piece of cake.

“But I’m still hungry.”

If I had been satisfied here, I wouldn’t have worked so hard in the first place.

“Thanks to the King of the Frozen Earth Set, I have 5 extra Command Power to spare.”

That meant I could create one more Excellent Ghoul.

With that, I’d be able to sweep up all the monsters in Shinaga.

Dahav called out to Ghoul and began the additional summoning.

***

The coins that let me dream of sudden wealth.

There must have been a time when I was secretly jealous, watching their prices skyrocket from just a few won.

If, like those coins, I could make my life several times easier than others without much effort, how would that feel?

There’s no need to ask, and no point in answering.

“This must be Utopia itself…”

The words slipped out naturally; that’s how happy I was.

Amorphophallus.

An insect-type monster that lived near Titan Arum, drawn by its foul stench.

Since Shinaga is a newbie city, its Level was similar to Titan Arum, but the difficulty was worlds apart.

First of all, its quick movement speed set it apart from Titan Arum.

Of course, if speed was all it had, it wouldn’t have earned the fearsome nickname ‘Nightmare of the Swarm.’

The true threat of Amorphophallus was that it was a swarm-type monster, not a single entity.

Though much smaller than ordinary monsters, they lived as a single entity, gathering in groups of at least ten, up to as many as twenty.

Swarm-type monsters were relatively weak individually and could be wiped out by someone with powerful area-of-effect skills or firepower, but there was no way a user in their Level 10s would have that kind of power.

“Of course, that was only before Merhen’s information was revealed.”

After Merchen’s info was released, Amorphophallus became so weak it was called the ‘Housefly.’

In other words, while others saw Amorphophallus as just a pest, to Dahav, it looked like a jar of sweet honey.

“Time to suck all the honey dry!”

With a fluttering heart, I dove into the hunt.

“Come forth.”

A magic circle formed on the ground, and soon, two Ghouls appeared, each with the head of a Giant Toad.

“Guys, let’s go get that honey!”

The Ghouls, obeying their master’s will, charged at the Amorphophallus swarm as if they understood Dahav’s intentions.

As the Ghouls approached the swarm, Dahav shouted.

“Swarm Hell!”

The Ghoul stopped in its tracks and opened its mouth wide.

The giant toad’s mouth shook the ground as it activated its skill.

In a motion reminiscent of a whip, the sticky tongue shot out, stretching so far it nearly touched the ground as the Ghoul shook its head wildly.

Whoosh—

It might have looked a bit ridiculous, but the effect was outstanding.

Sticky slime from the tongue instantly trapped the insects one after another.

Of course, the Amorphophallus weren’t just going to sit there and take it.

Sensing the attack, the Amorphophallus made the Ghouls their top priority and counterattacked.

Vzzzz—!

Hundreds of Amorphophallus vibrated their wings in unison, creating a roar like thunder.

Sometimes, the buzzing even became a strong gust.

It wasn’t a huge wind, but for the Ghouls, with their limping legs, it was enough to make their bodies sway.

The Amorphophallus didn’t miss their chance and surged forward.

It was like a school of piranhas.

They charged with the intent to leave nothing behind.

Vzzzz—!

The black swarm of Amorphophallus wrapped around the Ghoul’s body.

And they didn’t just restrict movement.

The swarm wove through every gap, eventually trying to engulf the Ghouls completely.

Just like a clueless puppy picking a fight with a big dog, it seemed the Ghouls would soon collapse.

But the Ghouls weren’t alone.

From the side, a crimson tongue shot out.

As the distance closed, the tongue seemed to grow even larger, becoming like a massive tidal wave that swept over the Amorphophallus.

Swoosh—

A brief contact, but it was enough.

The venom and sticky slime from the tongue left the insects completely trapped, like flies caught in a web.

The Amorphophallus swarm, sensing mortal danger, tried to flap their wings again to create another gust, but Dahav had no intention of letting that happen.

“Won’t work twice.”

He released the string of his bow.

Fssst—!

The arrow cut through the air, breaking up the Amorphophallus formation for a moment, and the Troll Ghoul used that opening to smash its fist down, scattering them completely.

The Amorphophallus tried to use their wings to escape quickly to the side, but that was the worst possible choice—the very thing Dahav had aimed for.

They all ended up within the range of the Giant Toad’s tongue.

As the swarm was whittled down, the number of insects rapidly decreased.

Before long, the moment the ground was black with bodies, the Ghoul opened its mouth wide again and sucked the long tongue back in.

Gulp—

The Ghouls stood in place, chewing several times.

[You have killed Shinaga’s Amorphophallus.]

[You have gained 4,000 experience points.]

[You have obtained 1 EA ‘Amorphophallus’s Blunt Snout’ and 1 EA quest item ‘Amorphophallus’s Unused Wing’!]

As I stared at the message window, memories of my hardships in Eren Port came flooding back, and I nearly teared up.

“Sniff, I can’t believe hunting can be this easy…”

If I’d known there’d be such a difference in difficulty, I wouldn’t have bothered suffering in Eren Port and would’ve just hung out in the newbie village like everyone else.

But before long, I shook my head.

No, it’s because of all that hard work and effort that I can hunt like this now.

If not for the achievements and tough training that built up my high stats, I wouldn’t have been able to defeat Boss Monster Albino or the Dire Tiger, nor would I have had enough Command Power to control these Ghouls.

As the saying goes, those who work hard deserve to enjoy the fruits.

“I have every right to enjoy this honey.”

With renewed vigor, Dahav dove into hunting the next Amorphophallus swarm.

***

Unlike Eren Port, which was a ‘First Impression’ area, Shinaga was more like a bridge you had to cross for the scenario.

Thanks to that, there were quite a few newbie users playing here.

In other words, unlike in Eren Port, there were now many more eyes watching Dahav’s gameplay.

If I’d just hunted Titan Arum like everyone else, they’d have called me a guildless rookie soloing, but hunting Amorphophallus—the so-called ‘Swarm’s Terror’—was sure to draw attention.

And the first place to report such incidents was the community known as <ASAs Channel>, where ASA users gathered.

ASA Community Site ‘ASA Channel ‘. Nicknamed Arts.

With a staggering number of users, all sorts of posts flooded in nonstop, but to really become a hot topic, you needed something big—what they called ‘bait.’

And hunting the Swarm’s Terror, Amorphophallus, wasn’t quite ‘bait,’ but it was enough of a curiosity to get the enthusiasts talking.

-I went to help out my college friend who started on ASA, and wow, things have really changed.

-Aren’t you supposed to just hunt Titan Arum in Shinaga? I logged in for the first time in a while, and now there are users hunting Amorphophallus too. I knew that thanks to the ‘Level-Up Strategy Guide,’ people raise their characters in all sorts of ways these days, but hunting Amorphophallus is just nuts.

-Don’t feed the troll.

ㄴ Author: If you don’t know about hunting Amorphophallus, you must be one of those old-school ‘oil users’ who raised from the very beginning.

ㄴ Oil user, lol. I’m a newbie hunting in Shinaga right now, and everyone’s just hunting Titan Arum. Don’t make stuff up.

ㄴ Author: No, I’m serious! I even used the camera item and took a screenshot in case people doubted me. (Photo attached)

-Um?? But there’s no way anyone at Level 10 could hunt Amorphophallus. Isn’t it just some bored whale in max gear bullying newbies?

Since they hadn’t seen Dahav’s hunt, this kind of skepticism was understandable.

Swarm-type, fast movement speed, relentless chain attacks.

Amorphophallus wasn’t called the Swarm’s Terror for nothing.

It was a fair reaction, but it didn’t last long.

ㄴ Author: No, I saw the Level-Up effect pop up, so it looked like a low-level user?

ㄴ No way, maybe you’re confusing the Shout Potion effect with the Level-Up effect? Or upload a video.

ㄴ Author: I was just returning to town after finishing a friend’s quest, so I couldn’t record a video, but you know the Shout Potion effect is different from the Level-Up effect, right? That yellow glow means it’s the Level-Up effect.

ㄴ This guy’s a pathological liar. Don’t feed him.

ㄴ Author: I’m telling you, it’s real.

ㄴ Yeah, right.

ㄴ Author: I’ll bet my account, it’s true.

ㄴ If there’s no video, it’s 100% fake.

ㄴ lol, no one’s hunting Amorphophallus at Level 10. At least make your lies believable.

ㄴ I bet this guy doesn’t even have an account, lol

With no real proof, users began to dogpile with ridicule.

Before long, the Author replied again.

ㄴ Author: I’m so frustrated I’m going back to Shinaga to record a video, just wait.

ㄴ Yeah, you’re never coming back~

ㄴ Author: What if I really do?

ㄴ If you actually record a video, I’ll call you hyung.

ㄴ Author: I got the screenshot, so keep your promise.

The debate to prove the truth was reaching a fever pitch.

***

When is the happiest moment in life?

Finding a lost bill on the street? Bumping into a celebrity by chance?

But those are just fleeting moments of happiness.

So what does it mean to be truly happy?

To work hard, to achieve, and to be rewarded.

Like right now, when things are going exactly—or even better—than planned, just like for Dahav.

[You have killed Shinaga’s Amorphophallus.]

[You have gained 4,000 experience points.]

[You have obtained 1 EA quest item ‘Amorphophallus’s Unused Wing’!]

[You have collected 50 Amorphophallus Wings.]

[You have fulfilled the completion requirements for the ‘Pending Task’ quest. Please report to Shazam to receive your quest reward.]

“Yes! This is awesome!”

In just two days since arriving in Shinaga, not only did I collect all the quest items, but I also reached Level 16—almost 99% of the required experience for the next Level.

Even following the so-called ‘Level-Up Strategy Guide’ route, it would take at least ten days to graduate from Shinaga, so this was more than twice as fast.

“At this rate…”

If I keep hunting hard for another day or two after getting the follow-up quest, I’ll hit Level 20—the so-called Shinaga graduation Level—in no time.

“Then let’s push on!”

Just as I was about to go see Shazam to complete the quest—

[Due to the ability Transcendence of the Five Senses – Luck, mysterious Fortune is at work!]