Like Old Friends at First Sight

In the gloomy alleyway opposite the makeshift shack.

Two men, one tall and one short, one thin and one fat, silently watched all of this.

They were all wearing matching black trench coats.

On top of his head was a rather large windproof hat that didn't fit his head properly.

A jet-black silk scarf, resembling bird feathers, hung down from the end of their hats, signifying their identity as the "Black Scarf Gang."

The tall man coughed heavily twice and said in a sinister tone:

"Even though it's a lawless old neighborhood, they're still showing far too little respect for our Black Scarf Gang..."

With a snap.

He received a heavy punch to the forehead, which knocked his hat off.

"Idiot."

The short, fat man muttered:

"Hurry up and pick up your hat!"

The tall, thin man sheepishly bent down to pick up his hat, his face full of resentment.

The short, fat man sneered:

"These Adventurers who dare to parade around alone are typical IQ test machines!"

"What? You're not convinced? If you dare to go and cause trouble, I guarantee I'll find your corpse in the drainage ditch tomorrow."

The tall, thin man grinned and said:

"You're being way too cautious!"

"Do you think I didn't notice? The thing on his shoulder is a gargoyle, level 40."

"But as long as we call in more men..."

With a snap.

Another powerful punch.

"What a useless piece of trash, he can't even pick up a hat properly."

The short, fat man muttered a curse:

"Damn it, you're so tall! I have to jump to hit your head. It's infuriating!"

"If your sister hadn't begged me to take care of you last night, I would have really let you fend for yourself."

The tall, thin man covered his forehead with both hands and dared not utter another sound.

Do you think the level others show you is the real level?

The short, stout man lit a cigarette, and his mood gradually calmed down.

"Remember to level up your 'Insight' skill. See that couple over there? Those are intelligence agents from the ' Stone Dragon Society.' The one on the left selling fake medicine is a member of the 'Secret Society.' And that woman, striking a seductive pose, is most likely a scout from the ' Iris Assembly.'"

"With so many elite figures just watching, who gave you the courage to go out and cause trouble?"

The tall, thin man glanced around, a look of lingering fear appearing on his face.

"I'm sorry... brother-in-law."

The short, fat man cursed, "Don't call me brother-in-law in public!"

Yes, yes, yes.

"Team Leader Hans," the tall, thin man asked timidly, "So we're just going to watch like this?"

Hans shook his head:

"Paper and pen."

The tall, thin man quickly took out paper and pen.

"The name Wellington is most likely a pseudonym."

She is over 40 years old and is suspected of using disguise techniques.

The character's initial profession is speculated to be an alchemist, accompanied by a gargoyle of level 40+, and it's possible that the gargoyle is an elite template.

"His actual level is 33, which is definitely a disguise. A preliminary estimate puts his level at 45+, and the possibility of him being extraordinary cannot be ruled out..."

Accompanied by Hans's extremely fast speaking speed.

The intelligence was written down line by line.

Hans took the letter, nodded in satisfaction, and tossed away his cigarette butt. "Deliver this to ' Madam Miken '."

The tall, thin man exclaimed in surprise:

"Should this be reported to Floating Island Number Three?"

Hans nodded with a profound look in his eyes. "A powerful alchemist is worthy of the esteemed presence of the gentlemen on the floating island."

"Hurry up, don't fall behind the others."

The tall, thin man hurriedly ran away.

In the alley.

Hans was left alone, silently smoking.

It continued until evening.

Wellington announced that he was closing up shop, and everyone left disappointed, but there was no disturbance.

"The people here are so kind and honest."

Hans chuckled dryly, greeted a few colleagues hidden in the shadows, and then turned and disappeared into the alley.

evening.

Roger walked along the path leading away from Sunrise Town.

At first, there were a few people following them.

But once they left the town, those people wisely stopped.

This greatly disappointed Roger.

"The first IQ test results were that everyone passed."

"No wonder he can survive in such a harsh environment."

He originally planned to go fishing.

While legitimately eliminating a few gang members, they can also obtain more information about monsters.

It now appears that his floor level was too low.

The low-level fishing method of "flaunting one's wealth" is no longer suitable for this version.

Unlike the Red Sleeve Brotherhood, which is full of country bumpkins.

The gangs in Gem City are all seasoned veterans.

They're all so slippery, you won't fall for their tricks! The good news is...

Thanks to that Lucky One person, the information on monsters in the "Red Soil Wasteland" is now quite complete.

It's strange, really.

Ever since that Lucky One got a critical success, the failure rate of enchanting with the Philosopher's Stone has skyrocketed.

Later on...

The weapons Roger handled shattered almost instantly.

After six weapons were broken in a row.

Roger decided to close up shop.

The crowd's gazes grew increasingly strange.

If this continues, he fears he'll be attacked as a fraudster.

In fact.

If it weren't for the gargoyles standing nearby to intimidate us...

Someone might actually make a move.

When he left.

His Sixth Sense told him that someone suspected the Lucky One was a plant.

This made Roger smile wryly.

He felt like he'd been taken advantage of.

Fortunately, despite the cost of the Philosopher's Stone over the past few days, Roger still earned a considerable income.

Net profit is approaching 20,000 Copper Coin!

This does not include the value of monster information, which serves as a threshold for enchanting.

"It seems that upgrading weapons is indeed a good deal."

Thinking this way.

Roger felt even more grateful for Wellington's death.

The next day.

Representatives from the families of the six floating islands arrived in Sunrise Town.

Just as the gang leaders had predicted.

Alchemists skilled in enchanting are highly valued on the floating island.

But the problem is...

Wellington is gone!

Just as quietly as he arrived.

They disappeared without a trace.

This has caused great distress to the gang leaders.

They mobilized a lot of manpower to search, and some even secretly used the power of divination, but the information they obtained was still only fragmentary.

This incident caused quite a stir in Sunrise Town.

It took a long time for things to return to normal.

However, it was in the drainage ditch outside the town.

Another pile of disfigured corpses appeared.

Roger, of course, knew nothing about any of this.

As early as the second day after the intelligence was obtained.

He then embarked on a completely new path of making friends.

Three days later.

Red Soil Wasteland.

The sun was blazing.

On the raised rocky hill.

A warthog that had been dead for some time lay quietly in the shadows.

Roger buried himself in the gravel, waiting for a destined person.

Two days before entering the Red Soil Wasteland.

Roger didn't find a single monster.

He quickly found the root of the problem—

The monsters here seem to have some connection to purgatory; the bloodline of the Quasi-Horned Demon exerts a rank suppression on them.

As soon as they smelled the scent of the muscular younger brother, all the monsters ran away.

No one would bother to greet Roger anymore.

Today he chose to act alone.

"Hopefully we can open for business."

Roger squinted as he looked ahead.

Not far away, inside the mouth of a warthog, there was a small, bright bead.

The bead contains a semi-solid, semi-liquid substance.

That was a new tool that Roger developed after six months of seclusion.

"Thunderstorm Orb: Ultra-high concentration Lightning Element polymer"

"Magic Abundance: 14"

"Throw/Detonate: Within the effective blast radius, deals a fixed 480 damage and inflicts a continuous paralysis status on the target."

"Producers: Roger and his eternal brother Thunder Dragon"

"Materials needed: Roger's tail scales, Bladder membrane of Thunder Dragon"

The process of making Thunderstorm Orb is complicated and requires careful consideration.

In short, one day Roger was surprised to discover that the tail scales of his Second Form were somewhat special.

After plucking a piece and grinding it into powder.

Adding a little bit of Lightning Element modifier gives it an explosive capability that is even more terrifying than Hand Tumor Bomb.

Roger was overjoyed by this discovery.

They happily took advantage of their own profits.

After rigorous testing.

He discovered that the bladder lining of the Thunder Dragon was the best encapsulation material.

Thus, another great prop was born.

Six months have passed.

He has accumulated more than 1,000 Thunderstorm Orb.

That's enough to start a small-scale war.

During the research process of "Thunderstorm Orb".

Roger also discovered the value of the Thunder Dragon egg, which had previously been considered worthless.

After being simply roasted over a fire, the contents of the dragon egg will solidify into a paste-like substance.

This dragon oil has extremely high combustion value, and based on this, Roger developed "Dragon Fat Fire".

"Dragon Fat Fire: Flammable Material"

"Magic Abundance: 6"

"Characteristic: It has extremely high combustion efficiency after being ignited. Items soaked in Dragon Fat Fire have an increased flammability index of +20."

Note: Crumble Bones and Scatter Ashes disposal kit +1

The two items mentioned above represent Roger's small contributions as a pharmacist during his health regimen.

They might not be so convenient when dealing with humans.

However, it is exceptionally adept at dealing with monsters.

For example, right now.

"Sixth Sense: A Multi-legged Earth Dragon is approaching."

Roger held his breath.

The soil beneath the hill was undulating slightly.

Suddenly.

A colossal creature burst from the ground and lunged at the delicious warthog! With a deafening roar...

Before the violent explosion occurred.

With lightning-fast reflexes, Roger threw the Sin Mark in his hand!

"You killed a Multi-legged Earth Dragon."

You have gained 17 XP points.

"Your hair has become slightly smoother."

"Damn it!"

Roger spat out the sand from his mouth.

This is the first marker he's acquired since entering the Red Soil Wasteland! But this attribute...

I can only say I was unlucky.

Looking at the mangled corpse of the Multi-legged Earth Dragon, Roger didn't move and chose to continue lying in wait.

At dusk.

Dark shadows emerged from beneath the rocks and surged toward the corpse of the Multi-legged Earth Dragon.

Roger smiled kindly.

He patiently seized the opportunity.

They waited until the Multi-legged Earth Dragon's body was completely covered by shadow.

That's when he decisively took action!

A bottle of Dragon Fat Fire was thrown over.

A tiny spark lit up.

Flames shot into the sky from the ground!

Those patches of shadow are evaporating at a speed visible to the naked eye!

"You killed one Titan Ant."

You have gained 1 XP point.

"Your kidneys have experienced a slight improvement in their metabolic capacity."

"Barely acceptable."

Watching the Titan Ant struggling in the firelight, Roger silently ranked them as "Casual Encounters".

Roughly equivalent to the younger brother of the Bone Dragon and the younger brother of the Water Ghost.

Just as he was about to get up and clean up the mess.

My Sixth Sense suddenly kicked in.

Amidst utter chaos.

He noticed an incredibly ugly insect that swaggered into the Big Fire.

A moment later, it flew out with a large piece of charred meat almost the size of its body.

"Fire-resistant insects?"

Roger got interested and casually added a "Hunter's Mark".

He was about to stalk the insect! But as soon as the Hunter's Mark was made, the insect dropped the meat and flew menacingly towards Roger! Roger didn't dare to be careless and slapped it away.

Shattering Palm! Smash!

Roger then swatted the insect to death on the ground.

"So ugly yet so arrogant, I thought he was some kind of strong guy..."

Roger was puzzled.

A new notification appeared in the data panel.

"You have killed one Aether Dragon Eater."

You have gained 1 XP point.

"Your Nerve Reflex Speed have been slightly improved."

"Reflection?"

Roger jumped in surprise and quickly dug the "bug" out of the mud.

"It's reflection! That's a property on par with toughness!"

His eyes lit up.

Suddenly.

He felt that the insect in his hand had become incredibly delicate in appearance!

Look at that little head and pointed tail, how cute it is!

"Could it be..."

Is this what they mean by instant connection?

Roger thought to himself.

I've written two chapters totaling 7,000 words today, please give me your support.