Adventurer's Handbook

Emerald Forest, Grayrock Town.

In the early morning, a breeze from the forest awakened this gray border town.

"Tinkle—"

The small wind chimes hanging on the window frame jingled crisply.

Gauss sat on a wooden crate bed, pressing the linen cloth beneath him, feeling the rough texture of the fabric and the thick layer of straw underneath, remaining silent for a long time.

Fragments of past memories kept surfacing in his mind, the memories of a young hunter striking out on his own and a recent college graduate intertwining, plunging him into a state of confusion.

Who am I? Where am I? Is this a dream?

As if to confirm, he stood up and walked to the window to look out.

The morning mist had not yet completely dispersed. The merchant caravan's carts creaked on the sandstone road. A woman, an earthenware pot tucked under her arm, placed goods on the display shelf outside her shop. The blacksmith's apprentice pushed open the door and hung up the "Open" wooden sign.

What greeted him was a street scene completely different from his previous life, filled with the aura of another world.

Everything was telling him concretely that he had transmigrated, arriving in a brand new world.

Gauss stood lost in thought.

If the memories in his head were correct, this world seemed to be filled with all sorts of magical powers with a fantastical flair.

Whether it was the Goblins, Kobolds, or Mud Monsters that commoners might encounter, or the Dragons and Devils that could threaten the survival of kingdoms, they were all real, not just fictional stories passed down by word of mouth among bards.

In addition to the wide variety of monsters, there were also Professionals who mastered Magic and Combat Skills, such as Mages, Warlocks, Warriors, Druids, and Rangers.

Thinking of these, Gauss's somewhat gloomy heart couldn't help but beat faster.

Although it was not easy for ordinary people to become Professionals in this world, he had not come empty-handed.

What came with him to this world was his golden finger, a magical book that existed only in his mind—the Adventurer's Handbook.

[Attribute Panel] [Monster Codex] [Map]

The appearance of this book in his mind greatly increased Gauss's sense of security after suddenly transmigrating to another world.

Name: Gauss

Strength: 5 (Physical power, carrying capacity, explosive force, and other kinetic output)

Agility: 5 (Body flexibility, dynamic coordination)

Constitution: 5 (Stamina, physical fitness, wound recovery, cardiopulmonary metabolism)

Intelligence: 6 (Memory, thought, mental power)

Perception: 5 (Senses, intuition, judgment)

Charisma: 5 (Temperament, affinity, appearance, and physique)

Skills: None

The Attribute Panel page recorded his various stats. Except for Intelligence at 6, all others were 5.

His physical condition was mediocre; 5 points should represent the average attribute level of the general populace.

Could the 6 points in Intelligence be related to his transmigration?

Shaking his head, Gauss looked at the Monster Codex.

The Monster Codex was divided into tiers based on threat level: Common, Elite, Commander, Lord, Legendary, and ??.

The only section he could currently view was the Common tier. The pages for the higher tiers were firmly stuck together, and he couldn't open them.

Unfortunately, even the Common interface was still a dull gray.

Randomly clicking on a dark icon would bring up a prompt: "This target has not yet been defeated, and its corresponding codex entry cannot be illuminated at this time."

"Notification: Codex points are accumulated for both individual species and all monsters. Upon reaching the corresponding codex accumulation target, you can claim the reward for that stage."

It seemed he needed to defeat monsters first to fully unlock the Monster Codex and obtain various stage rewards.

Gauss nodded thoughtfully.

Then he looked at the last option, "Map."

He concentrated, and a map quickly appeared in his mind.

The center of the image should be his own location.

His current location was represented by a simplified icon of a stone building.

"The building can be named."

"Sophia's Hostel," he silently recited, and the building he was in was quickly named.

Only a small area of the map was illuminated, just his immediate surroundings.

Other areas were shrouded in mist. Relying on his intuition, he felt it was related to the degree of exploration.

He hadn't even left his room yet, so naturally, he couldn't gather information to complete the map.

As he explored his surroundings further, the map should gradually become illuminated.

After reviewing the functions of his golden finger, Gauss felt greatly reassured.

After packing his personal belongings, he went downstairs.

"Sophia, a breakfast, please."

The first floor was the dining area and the reception. The few round wooden tables were empty.

This building, which he had named Sophia's Hostel on the Map, was more like a youth hostel converted from a residential house in his previous life, catering to freelance workers like himself who had no fixed abode.

Rental options were divided into short-term and monthly rentals.

A single room cost 2 Copper Coins per day, with a monthly discount price of 30 Copper Coins per month, which was very cheap compared to taverns.

In addition, for an extra fee, the Shopkeeper Sophia could also provide meals.

Breakfast was 1 Copper Coin per serving, while main meals like lunch and dinner were 2 Copper Coins per serving.

The prices were low, enough to fill one's stomach, but one shouldn't expect much from the dishes.

Naturally, there was no meat to be seen. Black bread, homemade pickles, wild vegetable soup, stewed beans, and oatmeal were the most common dishes on weekdays.

"Okay." A plump, blonde woman with a full figure emerged from under the counter at the reception. She looked close to thirty, but her appearance wasn't old; instead, she had the charm of a mature woman. "Little Gauss, overslept today?"

"Yes, I couldn't sleep last night. The prey I could catch has noticeably decreased." Gauss casually sat down at an empty wooden table.

"Still, you need to get enough rest."

Not long after, Sophia heated up the pre-prepared dishes and handed them over.

Today's breakfast was black bread with stewed vegetable soup.

The black bread on the plate had already been sliced and looked very hard.

Seeing that Sophia had returned to the kitchen, Gauss picked up a slice and tapped it on the plate. The moment the black bread slice hit the wooden plate, it made a crisp clacking sound.

Can this thing even be eaten?

He looked suspiciously at the stone-like, unknown object in his hand. Upon closer inspection, he could even see tiny wood shavings mixed in.

Whatever!

Following the way he remembered eating it, he put the black bread into the boiling vegetable soup.

After a while, the black bread finally softened after soaking, absorbing the soup, and looking edible.

He pinched a piece with a wooden spoon and, along with the soup, put it into his mouth.

He chewed a few times and swallowed.

As the food passed through his throat, it felt sticky and nauseating, with a slight discomfort that tickled his throat.

Huh? This taste, this texture. It really wasn't good.

Even though Gauss had prepared himself mentally, it was still worse than he had imagined once it was in his stomach.

He couldn't help it. In his previous life, he had lived in a world of abundance. Even as an ordinary worker, his three meals a day were far better than this sustenance for maintaining basic life functions at the bottom of this other world.

Gauss numbly finished the first meal of his life in this other world.

Amidst the Shopkeeper Sophia's concerned "Be careful on your way," he waved his hand and officially embarked on his journey in the other world.

The newly risen sun had already climbed to the peaks of the distant mountains.

The early morning sunlight spilled onto the gray stone rooftops of Grayrock Town. This border town, adjacent to the Emerald Forest, was beginning to liven up.

People came and went on the streets. Besides merchants buying and selling, one could occasionally see groups of people who appeared to be Adventurers. Of course, the most numerous were freelance workers like his original body.

The original body was a half-baked hunter who made a living by hunting. His daily job was to roam the outermost areas of the Emerald Forest and set up hunting traps.

Catching prey like wild rabbits and pheasants could fetch 20 Copper Coins each, as meat was a relatively expensive commodity for commoners at the bottom in this world.

However, hunting success depended on luck. There were many hunters active in the outermost areas of the Emerald Forest, and the hunting resources were not as abundant as imagined due to competition and division.

When lucky, Gauss could catch up to 3 wild rabbits a day, earning a daily wage of 50-60 Copper Coins.

If unlucky, he might not catch anything for four or five days, or even longer.

Fortunately, after setting up his traps, he could also pick wild vegetables, fruits, and medicinal herbs on his way back along the outskirts of the forest. Such random harvests allowed him to return with something.

Coupled with occasional odd jobs, buying some agricultural products from villages and selling them in town, these small earnings made life not so difficult.

The original body had been out of his family for a year. Relying on his ancestral skills in making traps and his diligent habit of saving, he had managed to accumulate a small sum of money.

3 Silver Coins and 65 Copper Coins.

His goal was to buy a house in town, but the cheapest house in town cost upwards of 90 Silver Coins. Added to the continuous house taxes he would have to pay later, his savings were still quite far off. It could be said that without a stroke of luck, it would take at least another thirty years of hard work to afford a property.

Grayrock Town was located in a border area, but it was still a town, not a village. Moreover, it was adjacent to the Emerald Forest, with many passing Adventurers and merchant caravans. Commerce was prosperous, and services were complete. Owning a house here was naturally not a simple matter for ordinary people.

But it was precisely because of this that the original body, forced to leave home and strive independently, wanted to buy property here, settle down, and prove himself to his family.

"Unfortunately, the money you worked hard to save for over a year to buy a house will be used by me today," Gauss shook his head, seemingly talking to himself.

He wasn't planning to continue hunting today; instead, he intended to hunt a monster to illuminate the Monster Codex and see what special rewards he would receive later.

He wanted to escape the identity of a bottom-tier freelance worker, and for now, his hope lay in this Adventurer's Handbook.