Chapter 60: Settling the Gains
Hiding in the tall grass, Cecilia could only stare, her eyes wide.
She had never imagined that killing Demons could be as simple and rhythmic as chopping vegetables.
"So... so amazing."
The young woman muttered to herself unconsciously as she lay prone in the grass.
The battle continued.
As time went on, the physical toll of such high-intensity, repetitive combat was terrifying.
But Lance was like a tireless perpetual motion machine; the precision of his movements didn’t falter in the slightest.
Not until the last Stone Shell River Crab lay twitching and dying under Lance’s sword did the beach finally return to tranquility.
Amidst the field of crab shells and severed limbs, the number of Demons that had died at Lance’s hand had reached twenty-three.
Lance stepped out from the rock crevice, shaking out his sore arm and letting out a long breath.
He summoned his system panel.
The first thing that caught his eye was the improvement in his Swordsmanship.
[Castro Swordsmanship LV4 (26/400)]
His Skill Level had shot up by 26 points from this single battle. The gains from actual combat truly far surpassed those from tedious training.
Next was the biggest gain of the trip.
[System Prompt: Stone Shell River Crab Research Progress +22]
[Biological Research Level Up: LV1→ LV2]
[Racial Trait Unlocked: Weakness Insight (Stone Shell River Crab)]
Lance glanced at the corpses on the ground, and red spots of light immediately appeared in his vision.
Besides the eyestalks and joints, even the seams of the abdominal shells were highlighted.
However, the quest settlement was a bit of a letdown.
[Commission Complete: Clear Stone Crab Shallow Beach (15/15)]
[Reward: 90 Skill Experience]
’So there really is a cap...’
Lance stroked his chin.
Even though he had killed an excess of twenty-three, the quest reward was still only calculated for the stipulated fifteen.
The extra eight kills, aside from granting Swordsmanship Skill Level and materials, didn’t contribute to the Skill Experience pool.
’Looks like when I take clearing commissions from now on, I should try to pick ones with high kill counts to make it worthwhile.’
Lance mentally noted this rule.
He also realized that while killing alone was reliable, his efficiency was ultimately limited by his own attack speed.
’If I want to maximize my multi-tasking privileges, I have to train up that rookie hiding in the grass as soon as possible.’
Only with two people working at the same time could the grinding efficiency double.
’I’ll just focus all of this week’s clearing commissions on Stone Crab Shallow Beach.’
Lance looked at the ravaged battlefield around him and quickly made his decision.
This was just a small tidal flat on the edge of Copper Creek Forest, yet it had such a dense gathering of Demons.
Along the entire riverbank, there were dozens, if not more, of similar rocky beaches of various sizes suitable for the river crabs to inhabit.
It would be more than enough for him to grind to his heart’s content.
He took one last look at the Biological Research panel.
[Current Research Progress: LV 2 (3/50)]
’As long as I keep this pace, one week is more than enough time. I can definitely finish Level 3, reach Level 4, and then extract the Stone Shell River Crab’s Racial Talent.’
Lance nodded in satisfaction, preparing to wrap things up.
By now, the sun, once high overhead, had begun to set in the west. Its crimson-gold afterglow spilled onto the beach, dyeing the scene of carnage with a kind of tragic beauty.
He had to hurry up and finish the last two gathering quests, and also take care of the valuable materials on these corpses.
Just then, the sound of light footsteps came from behind him.
"Senior!"
Cecilia emerged from her hiding spot, laden with bags of all sizes.
Her cheeks were flushed.
"You’re so amazing!"
Even though she hadn’t participated in the last battle, just observing Lance’s combat rhythm and his command of the Demons’ weaknesses made her feel like she had learned a great deal.
Lance sheathed his Short Sword and glanced back.
Cecilia’s timing was perfect. She trotted over, the tool bag on her back bouncing with every step.
"Senior, here!"
The girl, slightly out of breath, handed the tool bag over.
Lance took it and smoothly pulled out a sharp Skinning Knife and a coarse-toothed hand saw from within.
"You’re just in time."
Lance said, his mouth not idle, as he squatted beside a huge river crab corpse and expertly began to dissect it.
"The Stone Shell River Crabs are our primary target for this week."
"Watch closely. I’m only demonstrating the key points of their dissection once."
"Understood!"
Hearing this, Cecilia immediately switched into serious-student mode.
The knife in Lance’s hand inserted precisely into the seam at the edge of the crab’s shell. With a sudden, forceful twist of his wrist...
CRACK! The heavy back shell was pried open.
A thick, fishy stench assaulted their nostrils.
Lance paid it no mind. He reached into the still-twitching crab meat and rummaged around for a moment, soon pulling out an irregularly shaped, cloudy-yellow hard lump the size of a thumb.
"This is a Crabstone."
He rinsed the object in the river water and showed it to Cecilia.
"This thing has no medicinal or Alchemy value on its own. The Guild uses it purely as a token to prove completion of a subjugation quest."
"This commission requires fifteen of them, so we’ll have to process more than half of this pile of corpses."
Cecilia nodded, mentally noting: ’Yellow lump, useless, quest proof.’
Next, Lance lifted the huge back shell he had removed, knocking on it with his knuckles. It made a dull thud, like stone.
"This back shell is the most valuable basic material on them."
Lance hefted it a couple of times to feel its weight and continued his explanation:
"It’s moderately heavy and naturally has excellent moisture-proof and anti-corrosion properties, making it a preferred material for making certain standard-issue Shields and light Chest Armor."
"A complete, undamaged back shell will fetch a price of about 30 Copper Coins apiece at the Artisan District."
Setting down the shell, Lance then picked up one of the crab’s thick, menacing front claws.
"And then there are these pincers."
"Using a saw, you can cut off the sharp tip of the pincer completely."
"This part has extremely high Hardness. Through Alchemy, it can be polished into special Armor-Piercing Arrowheads. They’re in high demand on the Black Market and can probably sell for 15 Copper Coins a pair."
"However..."
Lance looked at the corpses littering the ground with some regret.
"We don’t have any means of transport or large processing equipment right now, so we can only selectively take the most valuable parts."
He stood there calculating everything logically, accounting for every single Copper Coin with perfect clarity.
A trace of confusion flickered in Cecilia’s red eyes as she stood beside him.
’30 Copper Coins? 15 Copper Coins?’
’Is that... a high price?’
In her experience, her family’s procurements were always settled in Gold Coins. This level of pricing, in Copper Coins, was completely foreign to her.
But she stole a glance at her senior’s serious profile.
’If I ask "what can you buy with Copper Coins" right now, he’ll definitely think I’m an idiot with no common sense, right?’
The young woman pressed her lips together and wisely chose to keep her mouth shut. She put on an expression that said, "I completely understand and think it’s all very reasonable," and nodded solemnly.
’This must be basic common knowledge for Adventurers. I’ll have to study up when I get back.’