Chapter 35: Gold, Grit, and the Grind

Whack!

Ssshhk!

Thud! Thud! Thud!

[Level Up!]

A pulse of power rippled out.

The orcs collapsed, and a level-up message appeared.

Kang Juho quickly looted the dropped items and opened his character window.

Character Name: Kang Juho
Nation: Kingdom of Paraville
Class: Battle Blacksmith
Level: 110
Experience: 0%
Vitality: 28,750
Mana: 1,200
Satiety: 85%

Strength: 192 (+120)
Agility: 63 (+50)
Stamina: 575 (+85)
Wisdom: 60 (+50)
Bonus Stat Points: 5

He had finally hit his target—Level 110.

Time to move on to the next hunting ground.

He invested his bonus points into Stamina and muttered to himself:

“Raising action-based stats is way too hard…”

Action stats increase through specific actions rather than level-ups.

Even after a full day of orc hunting, only 1 point in Strength had increased.

And that wasn’t just today—it had been that way since launch.

Even with nonstop grinding, action stats barely budged.

“Shouldn’t have skipped the Beginner Training Grounds…”

In those early training grounds, you could increase your class’s primary stats by up to 10.

For a blacksmith, that meant Strength and Stamina.

Not 10 each—10 total between the two.

Not worth the time, he concluded.

“Still… it might’ve been helpful.”

The real deal started at Intermediate Training Grounds, where primary stats could increase by up to 50.

And unlike the beginner area, skipping that was not an option.

“Maybe I should go before it gets crowded…”

Juho grimaced slightly at the thought.

His original plan was to go at level 190—but now, players were starting to flood in.

By the time he got there, the training grounds would be packed.

“Eh, it should be fine.”

Even with more players, it was unlikely the hunting grounds themselves would get overcrowded.

***

“Nice work today.”

Kim Seokju approached him.

“Yeah, you too.”

“What now? Still got time left. Want to keep hunting?”

Juho checked the time.

He had expected to reach 110 tomorrow, but they’d leveled up faster than planned.

Two hours remained—not quite enough to move zones, but too much to waste.

“Want to head to the Intermediate Training Grounds now?”

“Training grounds?”

“Yeah. Better to go before they’re overrun.”

“Hmm…” Seokju thought a moment, then nodded.

“Sounds good.”

They headed toward Boredos, where the training center was located.

“You planning to focus on training quests until the day after tomorrow?”

Seokju asked as they walked.

Each stat required 50 training quests to max out.

Best-case scenario? Easy quests could wrap it up in one day.

But there were varying difficulties—for Strength, you might have to attack a training dummy 200 times, or kill 100 monsters in the practice zone.

“Yeah. Might finish tomorrow if I get lucky with quests.”

Seokju nodded, then asked:

“Any new skills drop?”

“None. Guess the game’s saving something amazing…”

Juho sighed.

Not a single skill since unlocking Hammer of Death at level 80.

No Battle Blacksmith skills.

Not even basic Blacksmith ones.

They soon reached Boredos, headed to the town hall, completed a training quest, and then walked to the general store.

“I’ll give you the Orc Tendons,” said Seokju, initiating a trade.

Juho had a quest from Garten, a merchant who would buy them at 120% market price.

No reason for Seokju to sell his own—Juho could get more value.

“I’ll sell and split the gold.”

“Awesome, thanks!”

Juho opened the quest window:

[Garten’s Request]

“How much will this sell for?”

He had 1,597 tendons—over 10x the required minimum.

If average price was 15 gold each, this haul was serious money.

Quick math:

• 15 × 1,597 = ~24,000 gold
• Add 20% = ~28,800 gold

Juho grinned.

And there were other byproducts to sell too—orc blood, skin, etc.

He had farmed uninterrupted thanks to an uncrowded hunting ground.

“If only the training grounds weren’t so time-consuming…”

He sighed. Once training was over, there’d be more player competition.

He wanted to keep racing ahead, but now had to slow down.

Step.

Juho suddenly stopped.

“Wait… I should check prices first.”

Market price varied not just by region, but even between stores.

If Garten’s “20% bonus” was based on a low base price, he might not be the best buyer.

“Let’s check other stores before selling.”

Seokju nodded.

They visited other shops before entering Garten’s.

Juho was surprised:

“Guess demand really is high…”

Every store was offering 20 gold per tendon.

“That’s almost 40,000 gold total…”

Smiling, the two walked into Garten’s shop.

“Ah, welcome back, hunter!”

Garten beamed with recognition.

“I’ve brought Orc Tendons.”

“Ooooh…”

A trade window popped up.

The tendon prices were already filled in: 38,328 gold.

Same base price as the others, but with the 20% bonus.

Juho smiled again.

He added orc blood and skin scraps to the sale.

Not worth as much per piece, but sheer volume made them profitable.

[Quest “Garten’s Request” complete!]

“Thank you so much!” Garten said.

Juho left the store, Seokju close behind.

“Here’s your share,” Juho said, handing over Seokju’s cut.

“Whoa, jackpot! Thanks!”

“No problem.”

Juho checked his leftover gold: 32,000 gold.

“Should I upgrade my gear?”

Aside from weapon and helmet, his equipment was still around level 55–60.

With this much gold, he could finally get gear that matched his level.

“I’m heading for repairs!” said Seokju.

“No problem. Let’s talk after training’s done.”

They didn’t need to train together anyway—each stat had a separate building.

“Got it! I’ll be in touch!”

After Seokju left, Juho thought again:

“Maybe I should save for accessories…”

From level 130, decent accessories became available—but they were expensive.

If he spent now, he’d never afford full sets at 130.

“Yeah… I’ll save.”

Having decided, Juho started heading to the Intermediate Training Grounds.

He chuckled.

Just earlier, he’d been worrying about not having enough gold.

Now he had more than ever—and new kinds of problems.

“Hope the auction house opens soon…”

Once it did, gold shortages and these decisions would all be easier to handle.

“Not much longer now. Just hold on!”

He reached the training grounds: four buildings, each for one stat—Strength, Agility, Stamina, Wisdom.

Juho’s primary stats were Strength and Stamina.

But he didn’t hesitate.

He entered the Stamina Training Hall.

[You have entered the Intermediate Stamina Training Hall.]

A vast space filled with training counters.

With no other players around, the place was completely empty.