The night wind blows through the low-lying plants, rustling them with a sha sha sound, mixed with the chirping of insects and the cries of unknown animals, each sound sending chills down one’s spine. It is already winter, and camping outdoors is extremely cold. Even with a campfire lit, Kells cannot gain much warmth. It seems that only those years of cherished collections can warm his heart a little...

  “Oh! This is Leila’s when she was 18, this is when she was 19! This... this whole pile is all Leila’s! So warm, without you all, I’d really damn freeze to death!” Kells is already shivering all over from the cold. The most valuable thing in his luggage is the ultra-thin quilt his mother made for him for his future marriage. Kells, afraid of getting too close to the campfire and burning this only valuable possession, didn’t dare to approach the fire source too much. But without getting close, it’s really cold! This bone-chilling cold makes it impossible for him to fall asleep. In a fit of determination, Kells simply crawls out of the quilt and huddles tightly against the campfire for warmth.

  “Cold! Too cold, if I sleep through this night, I probably won’t wake up again. Better to wait until noon when the sun is high to sleep. Tonight, I can endure by warming myself like this. Oh! Leila...” To comfort the coldness in his heart, Kells once again hugs Leila’s small panties tightly and enters into vulgar fantasies!

  “Hmm! Why is there a smell of burning...” Not long after closing his eyes and fantasizing, Kells suddenly smells something strange. When he comes to his senses, he realizes that Leila’s small panties have caught fire!

  “Oh! No!” In his excitement, Kells lets go... and with that release, all his cherished collections related to Leila catch fire and turn to ashes...

  “Oh! No...”

  “Oh! No...”

  One after another, piercing screams echo through the night forest! In the dead of night, if anyone were passing by, they’d surely be scared to death! But Kells can’t care about that—those were precious items he had been collecting since five years ago, always this guy’s absolute favorites! He had to admire these masterpieces every single day! In short, Kells couldn’t live without them! He was so heartbroken that he cried bitterly, even forgetting the cold on his body!

  After a long period of painful grief, Kells realizes that crying at this moment is purely courting death. When tears flow out, they are only warm for a moment, and once that warmth passes...

  “Cold! Cold! So damn cold!” The piercing cold instantly restores Kells’ sanity.

  “Better not to be sad anymore. Without Leila, I still have the girls of all of Anda, haha!” Kells’ advantage is that he’s relatively optimistic. In just a few minutes, he returns to normal.

  “It’s so boring being alone. I can’t sleep either. Just sit here in a daze all night? Depressing! This is only the first night, and I still have two more nights to go before reaching Locco. What should I do? If I don’t do anything, I’ll get scared. I’ve long heard there are monsters here. I’ve been here for five years and haven’t seen a single monster hair. It’s probably just rumors or something, but this is my first time coming deep into the forest...” Kells sits by the campfire, talking to himself, feeling very lonely.

  “Swish... swish...” Just as Kells is talking to himself, a few strange sounds come from around him.

  “Could it be... there really are monsters... Mommy!” Overly frightened, Kells actually takes out a cherished item and puts it on his head, even covering his eyes with it.

  “Monsters, retreat! Monsters, retreat!” This guy is muttering incantations, as if this bizarre action can really drive away monsters.

  After tossing about for a long time, Kells feels that there are no other movements and only then removes the item from his head, neatly folding it and putting it back into his travel bag.

  “Phew! A false alarm. If I were to see a real monster, it would at least be after I become an F-rank mercenary!” He strokes his chest and breathes a sigh of relief.

  But speaking of mercenary ranks, Kells’ mind begins to recall: Because the mercenary profession is becoming increasingly popular, the mercenary guild, in order to recruit more members, has lowered the entry threshold again and again. Now, it has developed to the point where as long as you can get a set of decent-looking equipment, you can register as a mercenary. However, that’s only an apprentice mercenary, still far from being a real mercenary. Only by passing the guild’s assessment can one be rated a mercenary rank. These ranks are similar to those of monsters, divided into G, F, E, D, C, B, A, S levels.

  Only after reaching F-rank as a mercenary can one take on tasks related to the lowest-tier G-rank monsters. The conditions required for other ranks are all one level above the monster rank. However, the highest rank for mercenaries is only S. After reaching S-rank, one can accept all tasks related to A-rank and below monsters. As for S-rank monster tasks... if there really were any, probably no one would believe it, so there’s no point in ranking further up.

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  Apprentice mercenaries and G-rank mercenaries are not allowed to take any tasks related to monsters. Although the entry barrier for registering as a mercenary is very low, the assessment is extremely strict. The mercenary profession is not child’s play; one careless mistake could very well cost you your life. Out of responsibility for the practitioners, the ranking system is exceptionally strict!

  Even for the lowest G-rank mercenary, nowadays, one needs to be at least a low-tier warrior or a low-tier magician to pass the assessment. Ordinary people shouldn’t even think about it. However, even if he can’t become a G-rank mercenary, Kells can still earn a lot of money through tasks unrelated to monsters. His special abilities are very much in demand in the mercenary line of work. But if he were to use those abilities under his own name, that would be a crime. However, if it’s for a task, that’s a different story—it’s legitimate earning.

  Since swordsmen and magicians were mentioned, it’s necessary to recall in detail the relevant knowledge. Anyway, Kells has nothing to do now, so he might as well review it as preparation for the apprentice mercenary written test. Speaking of which, apprentice mercenaries must pass the entrance exam to qualify. The content of the exam is precisely this recalled knowledge.

  So, the recall begins. On the De Rossi Continent, humans have many kinds of combat professions, such as swordsmen, clergy, magicians, pugilists, warriors, assassins, hunters, gunners, and so on. These professions all have corresponding guilds in large cities. Guilds and unions are two different concepts. In simple terms, guilds are more like schools. If you want to engage in a certain profession, you just need to enter the corresponding guild. However, the rank certification for the corresponding profession must be completed by the guild. The ranks are divided into low-tier, mid-tier, high-tier, expert, and master—these five levels. Of course, these are only for low-level professions. For example, swordsmen and warriors, upon reaching the master level, can enter the knight guild to continue their studies. High-level professions do not have ranks; instead, special titles are granted based on talent, such as Radiant Knight, Flame Knight, Guardian Knight, Berserker Knight, and so on.

  The types of high-level professions are extremely diverse. Above high-level professions, there is also a kind of glory profession jointly selected by all guilds. This glory profession is the ultimate affirmation of the continent’s strong individuals. Those who are granted a glory profession can easily qualify for S-rank mercenaries. Generally, high-level professions can qualify for B or A-rank mercenaries, and a few rare professions can qualify for S-rank.

  Of course, not everyone chooses to become a mercenary; it’s just a trend—the mercenary tide of the De Rossi Continent!

  “Haha, this knowledge is already ingrained in my memory. As long as I can get a set of decent equipment, becoming an apprentice mercenary is no problem at all!” Kells is very satisfied with his performance. He hasn’t missed a single detail in the basic knowledge; scoring full marks is probably very possible.

  After thinking about all that, quite some time has passed. It’s truly a matter of achieving two goals at once. However, sitting for so long has made his body start to ache. He stands up, stretches, and moves his muscles a bit.

  “Ugh, in a few more hours, it’ll be dawn. The night is really hard to endure. Fortunately, there are no powerful wild beasts in this forest. It seems that in the past, people often passed through this forest to Locco. There are many traces of paths on the ground in the forest, probably all walked out by people before. Ever since the rumor of monsters six years ago, no one has passed through this forest anymore!” After moving around, Kells sits back by the campfire and starts talking to himself again. Speaking of which, he is now following one of those paths walked out by people.

  “Monsters! Monsters! I really don’t know what monsters look like!” While staring at the campfire in a daze, for some reason, Kells suddenly has an impulse to look forward to seeing a monster. Because he has no money, Kells’ family couldn’t possibly own something as high-end as a monster compendium. That thing is a must-have for those who reach F-rank and above. However, Kells is very clear about his own abilities: in frontal combat, he has absolutely no chance of passing the exam.

  Because he’s bored, Kells starts fantasizing about monsters. “If only there were monsters that look like beauties, that would be great. Hehe, finding a monster beauty to be my wife wouldn’t be bad. Just don’t know if monster beauties like to wear small panties...” He says with a laugh. This guy doesn’t care at all whether the other party is human or not—his tastes are quite heavy...

  After thinking about monster beauties, Kells thinks of mercenary beauties again. “Mercenary beauties are even better! Once I have gold coins, I’ll definitely hire a group of beauties to do tasks together. Hehe, if I encounter such a boring night again at that time, it’s obvious that something blush-inducing and heart-pounding might happen!”

  “Mm-hmm! I hear that clergy are most likely to produce pretty little girls. Sexy female warriors are also good. Oh! And noble miss female magicians and alluring female assassins...” Kells lists the characteristics of women from various professions in one breath. These are all his goals to strive for. Just thinking about leading a mercenary group full of women to do tasks makes one excited.

  While Kells is lost in his wild thoughts, another hour or two quietly passes. In two more hours, it will be dawn. At dawn, as soon as the sun comes out, the forest won’t be so cold.

  However, this is the time when people are most prone to drowsiness. If one isn’t careful, they’ll start dozing off like Kells... While dozing, this guy keeps drooling from his mouth. I believe everyone knows why.

  When Kells isn’t talking, the entire forest becomes quiet. But in this silence, it seems that something is approaching the campfire and the sleeping Kells...