A tainted rodent emerged from the tunnels, revealing its ugly snout. It was smaller than the rabbits at twenty or so centimeters in height, composed of a fat body and short legs with sharp claws. The fur was short bristles, like the rabbits, and was a dark grey. The rats were also squishier than a rabbit of the same level but dealt more damage and were far quicker.

[Tainted Rat]

Level: 5

HP 98/98

This spot had been John's favorite because of these little pests. They spawned at the perfect rate for party hunting for level threes or fours, and the open area gave users of larger, swinging weapons more room to work with. Not to mention, the chamber smelled a bit less and was drier than fighting in a sewer tunnel.

John might be alone, and his level might only be three, but his gear was good, and his mechanics were far better than his past self. Furthermore, as long as he didn't shoot the pistol, the rats would come out at a manageable pace.

The rat engaged, darting around the pillars and between debris to close the distance safely. It was well aware of the little boomsticks that humans sometimes carried, even if this concern was misplaced.

Relying on its night vision, small size and fantastic speed, the rat attacked from an unpredictable angle. It attached to the back of the thief's heel and scurried up the tough material, aiming for the soft innards of the stomach region.

-70

[You have done a deadly blow to the Tainted Rat's head, causing major bleed damage and limiting its senses.]

John's basic dagger immediately stabbed in the head. The blow was so well-placed, to an observer it would have seemed like the rat intentionally ran face-first into the blade.

The Tainted Rat fell off the thief, laying on the floor when the dagger stuck it to the ground through its entrails.

-40

[You have slain a Tainted Rat]

[You have gained 57 XP.]

It was dead, just like that. It was far easier than John remembered. However, the XP reward was just good. He gathered the [Tainted Rat Carcass] that dropped. Normally, the body would yield some commodities and money, but John could directly store the body into his inventory as a quest item.

"One down," John muttered.

He hit a stone against one of the doorways, creating a reverbing smash sound. The scampering sound of claws on stone echoed in return.

These newcomers numbered three, advancing as a spread group. They had good a plan, applying a wait and destroy tactic. The first two utilized the tainted rats' spider-like climbing skills to disappear into the vaults of the ceiling, while the third melted into shadows of the floor-level rubble. The room was calm again as the beasts waited for the thief to make a mistake. John sighed - he admitted that RISE's AI for tainted beings was great, but that didn't mean he liked it - these hiding tactics took too long to deal with.

He squatted down, picking up a flat stone from the ground. The unseen eyes tensed for a moment as the thief showed vulnerability, then hesitated, aware of the possibility of a trap.

But none the Tainted Rats expected a projectile to fly into one of their peers. It wasn't the work of Thief's Wit: the skill wasn't available during combat. Rather it was the result of bountiful experience with throwing knives, a thief's weapons, and with similar situations, a thief's specialty.

-13

[You target has been struck by a blunt object in hindquarters, temporarily losing control.]

The massive rat fell from the rafters, right onto the dagger awaiting it.

-46

The point didn't puncture a vital point but the combined velocities of the point and the rat, pierced through it.

With a hiss, the rat at ground level made its move. It couldn't wait any longer: the situation was rapidly becoming a 2v1, but at least his comrade was buying time with his life. The target was the magic light stone in John's free hand – the loss of the light source would surely disorient the foe. Furthermore, the stone, albeit dim, was uncomfortable for the tunnel dwellers.

-17

-18

-20

[You have slain a Tainted Rat]

[You have gained 59 XP.]

John grabbed the first rat by the neck and shanked it three times at lightning speed, before throwing the corpse, hitting the remaining rat in the ceiling.

At the same time, the ground rat took a flying leap, aiming for the light stone and possibly John's soft neck afterward. Normal rats can jump up to more than a meter, to say nothing of the tainted heavyweight.

-10

But with the same remarkable momentum the rat came with, it left, suffering a sewage-dripping boot to the face.

Taking advantage of John's split focus and the frenzy of events, the ceiling rat made a clean landing. It hissed and attached itself to the thief, before madly scrabbling for the delicious organs under the leather jacket.

-34

It soon found out the meaning of a nimble blade as it suffered a dagger to the side of the face. Just like its ally, it tumbled to the ground.

-23

[The Tainted Rat is suffering irreparable bleeding.]

-13

-21

[The serious stab causes serve muscle damage and bleeding in the target.]

-12

Before it's remaining friend could return to the fight, John's dagger drew a series of stab wounds all over its fur.

-3

-5

[You have slain a Tainted Rat]

[You have gained 62XP.]

The executing blow wasn't even delivered as the bleed ticks killed it.

The last tainted rodent's survival instincts kicked in. The poor creature had just witnessed two of its brethren brutally murdered in front of it. Their blood – John might not have smelt it over the overpowering sewage – but the rat sure as hell did.

Its once aggressive claws carried it into the tunnel from whence it came. It could only take comfort in the fact that human seemed incapable to match its speed in the sewers.

But the rat would never have expected to have to outrun a bullet.

-27

[Your shot has destroyed the tainted rat's limb, crippling it.]

The force of the oversized slug disintegrated the left hind leg, interrupting the rodent's dash.

John methodically cycled the bolt.

-30

-40

[You have slain a Tainted Rat]

[You have gained 57 XP.]

In truth the rats were disappointing. They were weak and died in one flurry of his dagger. His memories depicted vivid scenes of the party struggling with three of the critters at the beginning, a real challenge. 'This just shows how exaggerated memories are.'

Maybe that's why he shot the gun, to recreate the same feelings. Maybe the speed was just too slow. Maybe, like many leading rank players, he had entered a bloodthirsty mode when he was hunting mobs.

The screeching of a large number of rats rang through the tunnels and into John's ears.

…

[John]

Class: Starter Thief

Level: 3 (6290/9000)

HP: 79/124

Strength: 9

Vitality: 9

Agility: 12

Dexterity: 13

Intelligence: 8

The fifty rats were very quickly dealt with and the solo killing of higher-level foes brought abundant experience. The killing speed was comparable to a whole team but by obtaining all the experience, John was able to gain nearly 3000 XP points in less than an hour. He was previously at 36% (3240XP).

John only sustained very slight injuries by the increased rate. Given that a class could increase its total hit points by increasing vitality or simply leveling up, he could shrug off many of rats' attacks with his superior health bar.

The slowest part about hunting was waiting for health and stamina to replenish after a wave. Health might be able to be replenished by healers or potions, but generally, stamina had to be done out of combat. Thus, John had to stop using the firearm occasionally to give himself a lull to recuperate.

That's where most of the solo hunters in the past had the freest time. They would usually eat some biscuits, sit alone in the hunting ground, and contemplate their life decisions.

As for John, he was considering whether to turn in the quest. It could wait and the next quest might not actually be doable at his current level. Alternatively, he could hunt until level four and break through the next level of Assimilation, unlocking RISE's modification system.

John examined his blood-soaked dagger and a rune he had obtained as a drop from the rats.

[Basic Dagger (Lightly Modified)]

A-Grade Dagger

Durability: 37/50

Attack Power: 10 Base | 11 Modified

Equip Requirements: Basic Dagger Mastery Level 1, Player Level 1

Modification:

+10% Base Attack Power

+5% Handling

Notes: A typical low-tier dagger lost by an adventurer in the tainted lands; modified by the previous user to suit his needs.

[Rune of Pistol Muzzle Velocity]

A-Grade Pistol Rune

Maximum Stack Size: 3 * Rune Mastery Level

+10% Base Damage

The rune system allowed players to customize the weapons to suit their needs, just like this dagger. Runes were items and could be applied to the weapon they were meant for. The modifications a rune could apply got pretty strong and unique: in the future, he would be able to put water damage on a fire staff, poison damage on a bow, durability on his throwing knives – almost anything, as long as one could get the required runes or the materials to craft them. The crazier ones would fall under RISE's enchantment system. However, that would take a while for players to truly develop.

For instance, the most ubiquitous dagger modification increased base attack power by a percentage. It could be stacked to a maximum amount based on the grade of the rune and a player's rune mastery, a universal mastery all classes had. Users could only use weapons with a certain number of unique runes installed based on their rune mastery. This mastery was notoriously hard to level, with no way clear-cut method to progression like dagger or longsword mastery, but eventually, the entire user base would be seen with huge stacks of runes on all their gear.

Runes rarely dropped by mobs and the weapon of which the rune was for was influenced by the members of the party. Additionally, they could be acquired as quest rewards and from treasure chests.

It just so happened that John was in a place that spawned treasure chests. Moreover, the first opening of these chests was guaranteed to give something good. On top of that, John knew the location of a few A-Grade chests and one B-Grade chest that had been taken by someone else in the past.

'I guess it's treasure time.'

…

'These damn rats are everywhere.'

The sewage seeped into Retzal's boots, slimy on his sore feet. It splashed everywhere, staining his pants and created a stench so thick he could barely run without the urge to puke. He could feel and hear the waves of effluent but he could he couldn't see anything – he had lost the magic stone he bought. He stumbled forward like a blind man.

Another gunshot fired somewhere in the tunnels.

"Which dumbass keeps shooting?" he muttered angrily. Didn't they know the gunfire agitated the rats?

Retzal, a gun-based thief, had witnessed it firsthand when he had fired his pistol earlier. He had entered through one of the main entrances outside the low-leveled sections of the sewers. He had been pleased when level one rats died in a few hits. He farmed them fairly safely right at the entrance. He passed level two, also progressing a bit towards level three when some other players showed up. He then purchased some supplies and disappeared into the depths of the sewers.

But he didn't know the rats were scared of the surface and wouldn't approached the guarded main entrance en masse. Retzal had bravely ventured forward before his gunfire attracted an army.

Retzal was a self-proclaimed treasure hunter, explorer, and lockpicker extraordinaire. His adventurous feats in other games had earned him a spot in the pre-release. When he first read of the long history of Gyead, Retzal instantly knew there'd be something good underneath the city.

But now, he was having doubts about the excursion. He was lost well below ground level with a manic who seemed to want to kill himself. Hundreds of rats, each over level four, must have been on Retzal's tail in the endless tunnels.

Another gunshot discharged, ringing through the sewers. It was louder and seemed closer than ever. At the same time, the hissing of the sewer rats seemed reinvigorated.

"Bastard!" Retzal swore.

-4

Like karma had heard that, he then ran face-first into a wall, and fell backward into the sewage. It was unfortunate that the water level was considerable, briefly but completely, submerging the treasure hunter. Retzal leaped to his feet, spitting uncontrollably. He was bleeding from the face but couldn't tell due to the viscous liquid coating his face.

Retzal had no time to rest, and realizing it was a fork, he turned right. After a few more turns, he could see a faint blue light. The tunnel floor was deeper here and Retzal was forced to wade-run.

Retzal soon recognized the source of illumination as a magic stone, not dissimilar to the one he lost. The light flickered a bit as a humanoid silhouette shifted in front of it. He seemed to be on a raised platform, completing a delicate task.

"Hey!" Retzal shouted. "What are you doing!" Was this guy really just sitting in the middle of a high-level hunting ground nonchalantly?

The figure didn't reply but rather focused on his task.

Retzal got closer and noticed the shape of a humongous handgun. Anger boiled up as he recalled his disastrous foray. "Are you the trigger-happy, suicidal dumbass who's firing rounds left, right and center?" he hollered in indignation.

That's when Retzal learned it was probably a bad idea to scream at a possibly insane gunman. A round zinged passed Retzal's cheek before he could even flinch. Milliseconds later, the supersonic crack of the bullet punched his ears, amplified by the enclosed space.

-117

Behind him, the extraordinarily well-placed shot hit a rat. It dug through the left eye and shattered the upper jaw, sending skull fragments into the brain. It continued through the brain itself, causing a nasty exit wound on the back of the neck.

The single, near instantaneous action, had silenced both the rat and Retzal.