Chapter 8 First Kill
Money? Ethan had none. Not only was he penniless, but all his current possessions were on him. Apart from the clothes on his back, he only had the Basic Mental Strength Cultivation book and the Stat Island compass, along with some dry rations and water.
"Robbing is out of the question, I don't have the strength for that."
After much thought, the safest and most reliable method, one that wouldn't lead to unexpected trouble, was to work for the Rogue Encampment, exchanging his labor for the things he needed.
After a good night's rest, Ethan went to find Akara early the next morning. Only Akara could communicate with him, and he needed her to convey his intentions to others.
Akara's tent was not hard to find. As one of the few remaining high-ranking priestesses of the Blind Eye Sisterhood, Akara held a high position in the camp. There was a separate area for the sisters in the northeast corner of the camp, and the largest tent belonged to Akara alone.
Of course, Akara also ensured the Rogues' combat effectiveness with her excellent healing and potion-making abilities. In every respect, she was one of the most important figures in the entire encampment.
When Ethan found her, Akara was standing outside her tent, staring blankly at a few plants, seemingly deep in thought. Only when Ethan walked up to her and blocked the already scarce light did she turn her head.
"Young mage apprentice, do you need my help with something?"
"Hello, Priestess Akara, I do have something I need your help with." Ethan organized his words before continuing with his mental power: "As you can see, I am currently penniless and have nothing on me that I can exchange for travel expenses. So, I would like to do some work within my capabilities in exchange for some reward, so I can purchase some defensive weapons and enough food."
Akara nodded, understanding Ethan's meaning: "So, you want me to help you convey your intentions?" Ethan couldn't communicate directly with the people in the camp, so he could only rely on her to translate, which was not strange at all. "Later, I will write you a few notes and teach you some simple words. That should be enough to solve your troubles."
True to her word, Akara was a woman of action. After agreeing, she immediately wrote several simple notes, such as 'Do you need help?', 'I can do some work!', and 'I need to earn money to go home!'. She wrote these longer phrases and then told Ethan to write the words he recognized on the notes himself to distinguish them.
At the same time, she began teaching Ethan simple phrases like 'Hello' in front of the tent. All of this took less than three hours, and Ethan himself was surprised by his learning speed.
"I never learned English this fast in my last life."
Not only did he learn quickly, but he also remembered everything particularly clearly. Even after learning a dozen words, Ethan found that he wasn't confused at all.
"What the Ancient One said about learning languages not being troublesome as mental strength increases is true."
Strong mental strength directly enhances a person's memory capacity. While it doesn't necessarily make a person's IQ very high, it does make it easier for them to remember large amounts of information. The talent of photographic memory, which many ordinary people envy, is actually an essential skill for high-level mages.
After studying for half a day, Akara realized that although Ethan had not truly embarked on the path of a mage, his control over mental strength and his memory were already those of a qualified mage apprentice. Suddenly remembering her current troubles, she began to consider whether the young man in front of her was a suitable choice.
After only a moment's thought, she made her decision. The Rogues were already at their limit defending the camp. In addition, they had to regularly patrol the area around the camp, clear out the increasing number of dark creatures, and collect as many usable resources as possible. The Rogues truly didn't have more energy to do other things.
"If you truly want to do something, there is currently something I need your help with."
When Ethan heard this, he suddenly remembered playing the game where Akara was the person who gave the first quest in Act I. Hearing her suddenly say she needed his help now, could it be that quest from the game?
"That requires one person to kill who knows how many dark creatures in a combat mission. Can I do it?"
While still debating whether to politely decline, Akara's next words made him realize he was overthinking things.
He was thin and weak, without armor or weapons, and although he was a mage, he clearly hadn't even started. Akara wasn't that unreliable. What she asked Ethan to do was not something as difficult as clearing the Den of Evil. Instead, she hoped Ethan would help her collect some herbs near the camp.
"The darkness is getting closer, and the pressure on the Rogues is increasing. Now the Rogues are forced to retreat and defend inside the camp, and they don't even have enough people to collect supplies. As a result, the herbs that can be used to make potions are becoming increasingly scarce, so I need to replenish a large amount of herbs to make potions."
Akara herself could not leave the camp. Not only her, but even the lower-ranking sisters were strictly protected inside the camp and could not go out casually. So, these tasks could only be done by others.
"Collect herbs?"
That sounds like it shouldn't be too difficult? He could take this quest.
Seeing that Ethan was interested in helping, Akara described the shape and characteristics of the herbs she needed in detail, and even took out a few pictures to help Ethan identify them.
"But you must be careful. According to the reports from the patrolling Rogues, the dark creatures near the camp are slowly increasing, and even some local creatures are beginning to be affected by the dark power. So, even near the camp, it is no longer absolutely safe."
Ethan nodded. That's why he didn't plan to go too far from the camp, or else if something happened, he wouldn't even be able to escape.
"I will write a note for you. Take it to Kashya, and she will help you prepare some defensive weapons."
"Thank you, then."
Taking the note, Ethan left Akara's tent and headed towards where Kashya was – the tall, strong woman stood in the very center of the camp, more conspicuous than anything else in the encampment.
Walking up to Kashya, he handed her the note. Kashya glanced at it and immediately recognized Akara's handwriting: "You're going to help Akara collect herbs?"
Ethan didn't answer because he couldn't understand her at all, but he still took out a note from his hand and handed it over. It was one of the sentences Akara had written for him earlier.
As expected, Kashya understood after seeing the phrase 'I need to earn the reward required to go home'. She didn't say anything more about how dangerous it was outside. Turning her head, she gave a few instructions to the Rogue beside her, then stood there sizing up the young man in front of her.
At this moment, Ethan completely failed to understand what the tall woman opposite him was muttering, otherwise, he would have been quite depressed.
"Too thin!"
"Looks severely lacking in strength!"
"A physique like this would be burdened even by light leather armor. Prepare him a light weapon, forget about protective gear."
"He really should be trained properly. My Rogues could take on ten people like this."
Ethan, who couldn't understand anything, felt that Kashya's gaze seemed unfriendly, but he still said thank you after receiving a short sword and a small shield.
"May you return safely, young man!"
Ethan understood this sentence. Before he set off, Akara had specifically taught him this phrase and said it to him once personally.
"Thank you again."
Placing the short sword in the scabbard at his side, carrying the small shield casually in his hand, Ethan walked slowly but surely out of the camp.
To say he wasn't afraid, how could that be possible?
Although he had been reborn, adding this life to his last, he had never encountered a situation requiring him to fight in battle, and against monsters mutated and corrupted by dark power at that.
"I have to face all this sooner or later, I absolutely cannot back down!"
Taking a deep breath, Ethan finally stepped out of the camp and walked towards the nearby woods amidst the Rogues' shouts of "May you return safely!"
The Blood Moor, this was the area where the Rogue Encampment was currently located.
Although the name was 'Moor', there were actually still many plants and animals, but their colors looked somewhat abnormal. Perhaps this was a concrete manifestation of the increasing invasion of dark power into this world.
Ethan didn't know that even the herbs Akara needed were being corrupted by dark power. Now, every time she made a potion, she had to first use purification magic to remove the dark energy contained within before she could continue making the potion. The potions made this way were much less effective, which was one reason why potions were becoming increasingly insufficient.
"As long as I don't go too far, I shouldn't encounter any monsters, right?"
The Rogues patrolled outside every day, clearing the area around the camp to prevent monsters from accumulating and attacking the camp. So, as long as he didn't go too far, not encountering monsters was normal.
Unfortunately, Lady Luck did not favor Ethan. He had just reached a point where the camp was barely out of sight when he spotted the first herb he needed. At the same time, he saw two stiff-moving zombies, still wearing slightly tattered clothes, wandering in front of the herb.
"Zombies... only two, no other monsters."
This was an excellent opportunity to train. Zombies were slow and clumsy, and although they were strong, it wasn't difficult for him to dodge them with his agility. Moreover, there were only two zombies. As long as he eliminated one with a surprise attack at the start, he would only need to deal with the remaining one in a one-on-one fight.
Ethan first carefully confirmed that there were no other monsters around, then made up his mind, drew his short sword, and charged forward.
To quickly deal with one of the zombies, Ethan not only moved at his fastest speed but also jumped up violently when he reached the zombie to increase the force of his charge. Then, he slammed the shield in his left hand hard onto the zombie's head.
"To fight zombies, you have to hit the head!"
After knocking the zombie down with a shield bash, Ethan immediately swung the short sword in his right hand and thrust it towards the fallen zombie's head!
Having watched countless novels and movies, he had a sufficient understanding of monsters like zombies, and countless 'predecessors' who had stumbled due to carelessness served as warnings to himself.
Therefore, Ethan did not hesitate. Once he started, he didn't overthink things or look back! Fast, ruthless, accurate! In just an instant, he achieved his first kill in life!