John did not linger after the battle was over. Now fully embracing what he had become, he severed the Bear King's massive head with practiced efficiency and prepared to leave Bear Mountain, his destination set firmly on Moster and the man named Bass.
Before he left, Flynn handed him a crude, hooded robe to drape over his skeletal frame. Without it, the Church of the Light would purge him the moment he stepped within sight of a town gate. The gesture clearly struck John. He thanked Flynn repeatedly, his voice rough with emotion, before turning and disappearing down the winding mountain path that led toward the city.
Once he was gone, the cave felt strangely empty.
Flynn exhaled and turned his attention back to the battlefield, beginning the familiar process of cleaning up after a boss fight. Although John had landed the killing blow, Flynn had dealt more than eighty percent of the total damage, so the system granted him full loot rights. More importantly, all of the experience went to him as well. The moment the notification appeared, his experience bar leapt forward dramatically, climbing more than half a level in one go. A solo kill on a major boss was no small feat.
Most of the drops were unremarkable: some monster materials, a handful of white-quality items, and assorted junk. However, five items stood out clearly from the rest. There was a green-quality two-handed greatsword, a green-quality cloth robe, a pair of green-quality leather bracers, a silver-grade ring, and one particularly odd item that made him pause: a bear's gallbladder.
Flynn glanced over the greatsword and robe first. Neither was usable for him, and their stats were nothing special, so he stuffed them into his bag without much thought. Amy could deal with selling them later. She had far more patience for that kind of thing than he did. The leather bracers, at least, were something he could equip. Bracers rarely offered impressive bonuses, and these were no exception, providing a modest increase of five Agility and three Strength. Still, better than nothing.
Strength did not increase skill damage for Rogues, but it did improve the damage of normal attacks and made weapon clashes less punishing. A Rogue with too little Strength could easily be staggered or overpowered by a Warrior or Duelist. A few extra points could make the difference between holding your ground and being sent reeling.
What truly caught Flynn off guard was the silver ring.
In the five days since the game had launched, this was only the second silver-quality item he had ever seen. The first had also been a ring, one Amy had pulled from a treasure chest after a quest the night before. This one gleamed faintly in his hand, a simple band etched with dark gold patterns of a roaring bear. The stats made him draw a sharp breath.
—
Ring of Kolut's Roar (Silver)
+18 Strength
+160 Health
Increases Critical Strike Chance for Strength-based classes by 1%
Durability: 80/80
Requires Level 16
—
Flynn stared at it, slowly appreciating just how absurdly good it was. He was starting to understand what separated decent gear from exceptional gear, and anything with a percentage-based bonus immediately fell into the latter category. As a silver item, the raw stats alone were already impressive. Eighteen Strength was equivalent to six full levels' worth of stat points. Health-boosting gear was rare, and at level sixteen, even a Warrior would only have around five or six hundred HP. This ring alone could boost that by roughly a quarter. The extra one percent Critical Strike chance only made it better.
Critical Strike was a defining stat for Strength-based classes, much like Combo Strike for Agility users or Spell Efficiency for Intellect casters. A successful Critical Strike dealt double damage and stunned the target for two seconds. Unfortunately, it was notoriously difficult to stack. Very few pieces of equipment offered it directly, forcing players to rely on Strength itself to raise the chance. Even then, the conversion rate worsened as levels increased. Early on, ten Strength might grant one percent. At higher levels, it could take fifty points or more for the same benefit.
There was no question that this ring was worth more than the two green items combined. It was a shame it was poorly suited for him in the long term, but for now, he slipped it onto his finger anyway. The extra health and attack power would still be useful until he reached Moster.
Rare equipment came in two varieties: soulbound and normal. Normal gear could be traded or sold, but had a chance to drop on death. Soulbound items, on the other hand, were permanently tied to the player. They never dropped, but they also could not be traded. Once replaced, their only purpose was to be sold to an NPC or disenchanted into energy crystals by an Enchanter.
Finally, Flynn turned his attention to the last item.
—
Bear Gallbladder: A peculiar item. The gallbladder of Kolut. Consuming it permanently increases Strength by 2 and Health by 30. Seems to have a better effect if cooked.
—
The permanent stat increase was undeniably tempting. If the thing did not smell so revolting, he might have eaten it on the spot.
With Kolut dead and the quest complete, Flynn expected to feel triumphant. Instead, a strange hollowness settled over him. The first phase of the fight had been manageable, but once the Bear King enraged, it had become a nightmare. He considered himself skilled, yet he had not lasted even ten seconds against that version of the boss. Without outside interference, he would have died. Even with a healer, most groups would struggle. Mana was always the limiting factor, and once a healer ran dry, the fight was effectively over.
What Flynn did not know was that part of Kolut's difficulty had been tied to his quest. From now on, any Bear King that spawned in this Starter Zone would be missing an eye. It would still be dangerous when enraged, but its accuracy would be significantly reduced.
Unfortunately, Starter Zone bosses did not offer server-first rewards. Otherwise, Flynn would have been credited as the first player in the zone to defeat the Bear King, and those rewards were famously generous.
As he finished looting, a voice call from Amy came through. "Night-Stalker, what are you up to? Did you finish your quest?"
"Almost," Flynn replied. "Just need to turn it in."
"Oh, good. My brother just messaged me. He wants me to do some quests and level this afternoon. We need to hit level fifteen by tonight for a dungeon. Want to come with us?"
"A dungeon? Like that one in the Starter Zone?" Flynn frowned. Honestly, he wasn't interested. That dungeon had been way too easy, more like a guided tour than an actual challenge. Quests were more fun.
"Of course not," Amy said. "That was just a quest instance. The one we're doing tonight is a real five-player dungeon. It's long and has different difficulty modes. If you want to come, I can have my brother save you a spot."
He declined without hesitation. "I'll pass."
On the other end, Amy gritted her teeth in frustration. 'Does this idiot really need me to spell it out and say I need his help?' She bit her lip and sent another message. "Come on, it'll be fun. You level up faster in dungeons, and you can get good gear. If we get the server first kill, it's guaranteed to drop silver items."
Her sudden enthusiasm immediately put Flynn on guard. The last time she had sounded like this was when she had talked him into picking up Blacksmithing and Engineering. That experiment had been a disaster. Both professions were time-consuming and devoured resources. Keeping up with both meant twice the mining, and he simply did not have the patience for that.
He chuckled softly. "Sis, if you need my help, just say so. You don't have to be shy about it."
On the other end, Amy nearly choked. 'Damn it.'
How could he be so clueless about the game but so sharp at reading people? Since he had already seen through her, she sighed and came clean. "Fine. The dungeon has three modes: Normal, Heroic, and Hell. Normal and Heroic are easy, but my brother's group is stuck on Hell mode. Actually, every group in Moster is stuck. If we get the server first clear, the reward is three silver items, plus at least one silver drop per boss. The gear is insane. Anything useful for you is yours. He only has one condition."
"And that is?"
"You follow orders."
"When have I ever not followed orders?" Flynn said, though he hesitated despite himself.
Before today, he had not cared much about gear. The fight with the Bear King had changed that. If he'd had a few better pieces, that fight might not have been so desperate.
Amy's voice brightened immediately. "So you're in?"
"Yeah," he said after a moment. "I'll check it out tonight. What time?" If even Let-There-Be-Light's group was stuck, it had to be genuinely difficult. That alone made it worth seeing. And they were friends. Helping them was only natural.
"Nine o'clock. You're level fourteen, right? We can level together this afternoon. You need fifteen to enter."
Flynn checked his experience bar. The massive EXP from the Bear King, plus the experience from all the other mobs, had brought him really close to level fifteen. Turning in the hidden quest would definitely push him over. "No need," he said. "I'm almost there. Got other stuff to do this afternoon. You go on without me."
"What? How are you leveling so fast? You're never this quick when we grind together."
"Well, when we're together, I've got you slowing me down," he said with a laugh. "Hey, where are you right now? Stay there. I'm heading back to the village. I've got something to give you."
As he said it, he thought of the skill book John had given him. It was useless to a Rogue, but for a Ranger like Amy, it could be invaluable.