Chapter 29: Alexandra’s First Trial

Not a gentle smile, but a sound so loud it echoed through the entire room.

“Ha ha…”

The heavy atmosphere that had filled the audience chamber vanished, and a message appeared.

[Cold Blooded Hope, Alexandra’s Favorability has increased by 10.]

[For the first time achieving Cold Blooded Hope , the difficulty ‘Hero’ Achievement ‘Frozen Heart, Even That Has Melted’ has been completed.]

[Achieving a ‘Hero’ rank Achievement unlocks an additional Achievement.]

Thanks to the series of messages that popped up, Dahav could now be certain.

‘It succeeded.’

The oppressive pressure that had weighed down his entire body vanished, and only then did his mind fully return, allowing him to realize just how bad his physical condition was.

It wouldn’t have been surprising if he had to take a cold shower—the moisture from his head to his toes was unrelenting.

‘I definitely can’t do this twice.’

Unknowingly wearing a grim expression at what he had failed to notice before, he released a heavy sigh, placing his right hand over his chest.

“Haa…”

At that moment, he realized Alexandra was standing in front of him.

He quickly composed himself, but Alexandra seemed unbothered and spoke without pressing further.

“Since you’re that confident, I’ll give you a special chance.”

Despite the increase in favorability, the faint smile lingering on Alexandra’s lips was somewhat cold.

***

There are moments in life—graduating from university, military discharge, passing a final exam—that one thinks, ‘This is the end.’

But as time passes, everyone, just like Dahav, realizes.

‘I thought it was the end, but it was only the beginning…’

Dahav followed Greg down a long corridor with his eyes and mind fixed on the Quest he had just received from Alexandra.

• Alexandra’s First Trial
• Rank: B
• Quest Details: Alexandra wants you to prove your abilities are not mediocre. Therefore, she has instructed you to visit Mendelssohn of Sky Ridge in the eastern part of the Palestine Kingdom, accept his request, complete it, and bring back his certificate of proof.
• Rewards on Completion: 150,000 Experience, Alexandra’s Favorability +10, Reputation +30 within all territories governed by Alexandra, the Judgement (ⅰ) gloves, and access to the linked Quest ‘Second Assignment of Alexandra.’

“Haa…”

Just looking at it made Dahav’s body sag and a sigh escape his lips.

It was inevitable because even without meeting Mendelson, just knowing his location allowed Dahav to easily infer the tasks and Quests he would assign.

Sky Ridge serves as a kind of hub city connecting several countries, but its rugged terrain and numerous mountain ridges are overrun by harpies, making it an excellent fortress during war, but a nightmare as a hub.

In other words, Mendelson was going to assign a Quest to hunt harpies.

‘Hunting harpies…’

ASA’s harpies were exactly as commonly depicted in novels or games.

They were fairly intelligent, lived in packs, attacked using flight and sharp talons.

In most games or novels, you’d just sweep them away with sword skills or magic, but that’s only when there’s a significant power gap or when realism takes a back seat.

In the VR game ASA, it was a different story.

Most players couldn’t fly, and harpies wouldn’t just wait around to be shot with magic or arrows.

‘In the end, I’ll need to use that net to trap their movement…’

That meant party play was essential.

Because the game inventory had limits.

Only 100 slots were allowed in the consumables tab.

That sounds like a lot, but since stacking wasn’t allowed and you had to carry potions, buffs, food, and so on, realistically only about 50 slots remained.

’50 slots won’t be nearly enough.’

Harpies typically traveled in groups of 3 to 5.

Even if there were only about 20 groups at most, hunting 10 groups would quickly use up all 50 nets.

“Usually, to fulfill the clear conditions for level 20 Quests, you have to kill about 1,000 monsters.”

That means traveling to the village at least 20 times.

Considering the distance between harpy habitats and the city, which would take 3 hours round-trip in real time—or 9 hours in ASA time—it was a dreadful method.

‘Especially when you consider the linked Quests that follow, the losses could be even greater.’

So inevitably, players who received the Sky Ridge Quest and had to hunt generally gave up.

If it was an important Quest with significant influence, they formed a party, cleared it quickly, and moved on to other regions.

For Dahav, who needed rapid growth and for whom time was literally money, it was the worst possible scenario.

“Haa. If only I had the Heavenly Cloak, I could manage about 15 minutes per harpy. Maybe then solo hunting would be possible.”

The Heavenly Cloak was one of Wilhelm’s treasured unique items.

It was originally an item that allowed players to use village storage anywhere.

When used, storage descended from the sky, alleviating the trouble of moving back to the village when running low on items or filling up the inventory.

That was how Wilhelm could easily resupply on the battlefield.

If Dahav could resupply nets like that, the hassle of hunting harpies would be greatly reduced.

“But I can’t just give up this Quest.”

Though inefficient for now, considering the future, it was absolutely worth investing in.

“And maybe it won’t be so inefficient after all.”

Whether it was because favorability accumulated or some other reason, Alexandra’s rewards were clearly, even excessively generous.

Excluding the favorability from the investigation and the potion-shaman, rewards had doubled.

Thanks to that, Dahav’s level rose to 22, and he secured two special items.

He couldn’t hide the smile tugging at his lips.

Just then, Greg, who had been walking ahead, abruptly stopped and said,

“This chest contains special items.”

When Dahav glanced past Greg’s shoulder, he saw a brilliantly decorated door.

Its elegance wasn’t the glittery gold of common treasure but a more dignified, cold splendor.

It was the golden palace of the city ruled by the latter, a reflection of Alexandra’s personality—serious and coldly magnificent.

Greg found the keyhole beneath the doorknob, inserted the key, pushed, and then turned it sideways.

Clank—!

The sound of the key fitting echoed, and the door opened.

Creak—

Dahav remained silent as Greg, seemingly uneasy, hastily made an excuse.

“Uh… The Lord has ordered us not to organize treasures or secret items separately… But the items aren’t bad. Come on, let’s go inside.”

Inside was chaos more fitting for a storage room than a display.

But Dahav didn’t care and shrugged.

“Honestly, I was just a bit overwhelmed. My room’s like this too, though.”

To be honest, he didn’t care about tidiness.

‘What mattered were the items inside.’

Though it would take more time and effort than usual, if there were items worth it, he was willing to invest.

‘And there are definitely items worth it inside.’

His steps quickened, as there were specific items he planned to pick up.

“So, I can go in now and pick out the items?”

“Yes, there’s no time limit, so feel free to look around.”

Dahav nodded and stepped inside.

The interior of the chest was even messier than it looked from outside.

It was exactly the kind of mess one might describe as ‘a pile of junk so large it looks like a mountain.’

Items were scattered everywhere without any organization.

However, that didn’t mean the items lacked value.

There were jewels so dazzling they nearly blinded the eyes, and high-end weapons and armor lined up.

If ordinary players saw it, they’d be dazzled just by looking.

But Dahav spoke indifferently.

“See? That’s why it took so long.”

The items outside might have seemed impressive and their abilities weren’t bad, but compared to those inside, they felt like cheap imitations.

The truly proper items existed deeper within.

Ignoring the dazzling jewels and equipment, Dahav walked further inside.

The deeper he went, the better the items tempted him, but his steps didn’t falter.

Eventually, he reached the end of the chest, near the wall.

The moment Dahav stopped walking, he clicked his tongue.

“This is crazy. How is anyone supposed to resist after seeing this?”

The items outside now seemed like worthless scraps compared to the state of those inside.

Just looking at them was enough to make one’s breath catch.

He almost reached out his hand instinctively.

[Waiting for Vengeance]

• Grade: Unique
• Classification: Intermediate
• Usable Level: 15 and above
• A man who lost his family to a band of thieves sharpens a dagger every day in his dream of revenge. He is said to remember his family always, staining the dagger with a drop of his own blood each day.
• Attack Power: 70~105
• Set Options: Strength +5 / Agility +15
• Special Option:
• Memory of Blood Fragrance – 10% chance on attack to deliver a critical hit regardless of the hit location.

Of the two items he randomly picked, both were unique-grade items difficult to find even with money.

Especially the second dagger, which was specialized in special options rather than base options, making it ideal as a left-hand or secondary weapon.

[Would you like to select ‘Waiting for Vengeance’ as a reward item?]

The message tempted him as if whispering a devil’s temptation.

“I can take two anyway, so maybe I should take this one too?”

For a moment, he almost gave in, but he shook his head firmly.

“No, I must endure.”

The better the equipment deeper inside, the higher the chance of even better items ahead.

Dahav approached the other wall and ran his hand along it.

Unlike the chaotic interior, the wall stones were well maintained, smooth to the touch without any sharp edges, like carefully polished marble.

After rubbing for a long time, Dahav’s hand suddenly stopped.

‘Found it.’

A barely noticeable single block protruded.

This was truly the key that would open the path to the real chest.