I woke up early in the morning as always, and go do my usual thing...ha?

Fudge! I am all out of things to smelt! Correction, I go through 2 excruciating hours of withdrawal! I then get some breakfast and head back to the smithy towards the counter.

“Hi, has there been any reply to my request?” I inquire.

“Ah, yes missy! We got a response from Advanced Disciple Gregon, he will be available only in 5 days. Is that alright with ya?” asked the dwarf.

“That would be great!” I excitedly exclaim.

“Alright, I will notify Gregon of ya’r acceptance” confirmed the dwarf.

“Thank you very much! I’ll be on my way now” I reply

After bidding farewell, I head off to the Adventurers Guild. Once I get there, my first order of business is to see what Rank G or F quests are available.

Looking at Rank G, it seems to lack combat quests altogether. Which I guess is not a surprise, considering that most Rank G do not even have a non-combat class. Most of the quests are just doing miscellaneous things.

Only at Rank F do I see quests that start to touch upon combat. In particularly, the two quests I see are [Collection: Horned Rabbit Pelt] and [Collection: Dire Fox Pelt]. If I collect 5 pelts, I will be rewarded 1 silver coin + market price. The market price of course depends on the condition of the pelt.

Well... [Horned Rabbit] is probably a no-go. It isn’t hard in general as they are pretty weak, even for monsters of their level. That said, according to the information from the library I read. These critters seem to have some of the highest fatality rate among new adventurers. Why? Simply because due to them being pretty weak, people let their guard down and before they know it, they quickly plunge at you with their horn! In sense, they are similar to the [Hell Boar] where if you can dodge or block the first attack, they are generally simple prey. But otherwise they can kill you pretty quickly, that is assuming you have poor armor though which most early adventurers do.

While I do have confidence in my speed, I am not stupid enough to take needless risks if I don’t have to. I will wait on hunting them until I get myself a chest-piece at least. So I guess [Dire Foxes] it is.

Like the herb quest, this one seems to also be repeatable. So I don’t need to head to the counter and instead make my way out of the guild, and out of the city towards the nearby forest.

I then put my [Sense Smell] and [Sense Presence] to use. Since I have been avoiding monsters at all cost, I am not exactly familiar with all their scents. But it isn’t much of a problem really. This forest has 3 main monsters, [Forest Goblins], [Dire Wolves] and [Dire Foxes]. Generally speaking, more than often, [Dire Wolves] and [Forest Goblins] travel in groups. While [Dire Foxes] do not. So all I need to look for is a scent of an individual mammal with fur, and wa-lah!

It did not take me long to locate a [Dire Fox] using this method, and with the help of [Eagle Eyes] I managed to get a visual. Thus letting me [Identify] it. It seems to be Level 8.

It would be nice if I had a true stealth ability... since it also has [Sense Smell], sneaking up on it normally is not going to work. So I guess I’ll have to shorten my distance the old fashion way.

I activate [Sprint] and rush at it with my dagger! It did not take long for it to notice me, and it tried to run away using its own [Sprint]. Probably to flank me from a different angle. Of course I would not let it do so. I activate both of my [Throw] skills focusing on speed and accuracy, I throw a rock right at the direction the [Dire Fox] plans on retreating. This causes it to momentarily stumper and change directions.

This was exactly what I was waiting for, as I already activated [Charge] aiming right at that spot! I then activate [All-Observing-Eyes] and loading my dagger with [Penetrate] and [Impale], as it gets off the ground mid-jump I [Thrust] the dagger right in its neck!

My dagger shreds through the fox’s neck and we travel like that almost a meter, and eventually the fox flings off and flies away due to the momentum smashing into a tree.

[Critical Hit] You have dealt 363 damage to the [Dire Fox]!

The [Dire Fox] then tried to get up, and it did barely only to collapse right after. It did not take long for it to die due to excessive bleeding.

“...”

Was a level 8 monster always this easy?

No, this is probably due to all the recent improvements that I mustered. My level has almost doubled, increasing my ability across the board, my skills have improved and not only in levels but in understanding and quality. With my super high [PER], I was able to judge minuscule details. With my improvements from [SPD] and my [Runner: Accelerate] ability I was able to quickly pick up speed and shrink the distance. And lastly with my [POW] and [Trainer: Strengthen] I was able to pull out a more powerful blow…does this mean…

I have become awesome?!?!

No! Lets not get to conceit here..I already know full well letting my guard down is the quickest path to self destruction! This monster was what? 5 levels below me! Not only that, if I think about it logically, there was plenty that could have went wrong. My high [PER] skill may help with making predictions and all, but that is about it. If I made a mistake and it went the other way, I could have opened myself up for an attack from behind! If anything, this strategy was pretty reckless! So lets not get too ahead with myself…

But it is true that I became a lot stronger than before...so maybe I can compromise and say I become a tad awesome? Hehe.

Now then I put my [Disassembly] skill to use, after removing the blood I start cutting up the fox separating what is worth its salt. Unfortunately, due to the limited size of my [Item Box], I can’t carry much with me. I really need to find a way to increase this skill… Then an idea comes into my head and an evil grin appears on my mouth...yup, that should definitely work!

Now that I know that skill level is not the only thing that matters, I pay close attention to my [Disassembly] skill in action. Trying to find ways to make it more efficient. It took me an entire hour just to disassemble it, of course part of it was due to me being extra careful on my first real disassembly since getting the skill.

I continue to seek out [Dire Foxes] while at same time collecting herbs.

After about half an hour, I locate yet another [Dire Fox], though this one was only at level 5. This time around, I am going to try a bit of a different strategy. I won’t exactly say this one is the safest one either, but due to this [Dire Fox] being more than 2X below me in level, it was a perfect opportunity to learn more about the [Dire Fox] attack methods. And at same time build combat experience.

I just walk out normally and wait for the [Dire Fox] to notice me. When it does, it runs away into the bushes. Of course it can’t fool my [Sense Presence] with my high [PER] as I notice the [Dire Fox] circling around me. When it gets behind me, it rushes straight at me! I quickly turn around and [Charge] straight at it while activating [All-Observing-Eyes]! The fox momentarily opens its eyes wide from shock, but that only lasts a fraction of a second as my usual 3 skill combo stabs it straight in the eye, thus killing it instantly.

[Critical Hit] You have dealt 330 damage to the [Dire Fox]!

Yup, awesomeness confirmed! What’s that? I am just picking on the weak? A Catgirl gotta do what a catgirl gotta do! Plus, it attacked me first so it is righteous self defense * snicker *

I again disassemble the fox, but this time around I cut the time down to only 15 minutes!

The problem is that at this point my [Item Box] is running low on space...So there is no room to fit any more [Dire Foxes]. Thus I instead focus the rest of the day on just collecting herbs. Once it gets closer to dinner time, I make my way back to the Adventurers Guild. Prior to reaching the guild, I made sure to take out the [Dire Foxes] out of my [Item Box], then enter the guild.

Time to begin my new “Operation: Cat Wants a Larger Box”!

I walk towards the material deposit counter line, and in about 10 minutes it is my turn.

“Hi, I’d like to cash in 3 [Violet River Grass], 2 [Sleepy Jasmine], 1 [Dire Milkweed] and 4 [Lavender Ginger Roots] for the quest, I also would like to put down 2 [Dire Fox Pelts] towards my quest completion, and also sell some [Dire Fox Meat]” I say as I put down the materials on the counter.

“Lets see, that would be 30 iron coins for the herbs, plus 10 iron coins for the quest reward for a total of 40 iron coins. The [Dire Fox Meat] would equal a total of 12 iron coins, and the [Dire Fox Pelts] based on their condition, I can give you a total of 40 iron coins. So your total is 92 iron coins. I will note that for continuous quests, the holding period is 7 days. If you fail to deliver the other 3 [Dire Fox Pelts] within that holding period, your quest progress will reset. Please place your hand on the orb” notified the dogkin at the counter.

After placing my hand on the orb and taking my iron coins, I then proceed to my next order of business.

“Uhm...I heard that the guild supply officer and guild master have this awesome skill called [Item Box], is that true?” I inquire with the most innocent expression and voice I can muster. I even used the [Voice Manipulation] skill for the extra effect.

“Yes...” replied the dogkin.

“Then would it be possible to see it? Just once would do!” I plea with desperation,

It is once said that no one can resist a pleading cat...the ultimate killer move!

“...Why are you making those stupid faces? The guild master and supply officer are busy, they have no time for the likes of you. If you have nothing else you need, there are others waiting” rebuked the dogkin.

Guh! Thats it! I officially hate dogkin! They are all freakin’ jerks! And it isn’t me being biased cause I am a catkin or anything, I just haven’t met one decent dogkin! Its like they exist for the sole purpose of aggravating me!

I storm out of the guild completely pissed!

I bet you if I was one of those literature heroes, he’d be like “What’s that, you just came to town and you want to meet them? Sure I’ll cancel both their schedules for the entire month to make time to see you. Just see them at your own convenience as our guild only exists to serve you and only you. We are completely incompetent and can’t do anything without you after all! I don’t even know how our town lasted hundreds of years without you!”

“Stupid dogkin!” I mutter fuming on my way back to the Blacksmithing Guild.

I ate dinner which tasted worse than usual today and grouchily went to bed.