Deadmeat Saga

After walking for another minute, Gerhart ran into his second opponent of the day... A Giant Rat, munching on a dead Giant Cockroach.

"Scree!" The rat hissed at him before charging over with wild abandon.

"Good timing!" Gerhart eagerly smiled behind his mask, put down his lantern, and unsheathed his sword.

As soon as the rat got close, Gerhart attempted to stab it. However, the rat jumped to the right before leaping at Gerhart's right leg. Gerhart moved his body to the left to avoid it while drawing an arc with his sword, cutting a gash on the rat's side.

"Chee!!!" However, it was not enough to deter the Giant Rat, a highly territorial feral monster that would attack its opponent until its last breath. It attempted to pounce again, but this time, Gerhart thrust his sword into it, skewering it by the neck.

After twitching a few times, the rat went limp, signaling Gerhart's victory.

"These guys are ferocious," Gerhart muttered, kicking the rat off his sword. "As expected from living monsters."

Wiping his sword from blood and sheathing it, Gerhart removed the tail. The subjugation proof only needed two finger's worth, so it wasn't too heavy. And even if it was, he had the Pack Mule talent, which empowered his back muscles and improved endurance strength. It helped him support more weight and move his body more efficiently. To a laborer or baggage carrier, it was an excellent talent.

Meanwhile, the Strong Arms talent was always good since it increased the arm's strength and was always active. It was a good talent for many professions.

On the other hand, Treasure Hunter was not too good outside the dungeon, but Hazel had a knack for finding loose change, so it had some uses.

There was also that ??? Talent... But he figured it was the relic.

And now, these three new talents belonged to Gerhart... And he couldn't wait to find out what he would get from the rat.

"Hm... Should I remove the tail first?" Gerhart asked himself while cleaning and sheathing his sword. "Would it affect the absorption because some body parts are missing?"

After thinking, Gerhart cut off two fingers' worth of the tail with his knife and put it away in his bag before trying to absorb the rat's main body.

 

Energy Detected. Absorb?

 

"Hoh... So it works... Maybe the body needs to be complete enough?" Gerhart guessed. "I would cut the rat in half and see if I can still absorb it then... But that seems like a hassle.

However, he didn't immediately absorb it, remembering how he became incapacitated last time due to pain. Instead, he looked toward his surroundings. After ensuring there were no monsters/people, he decided it was safe enough.

"Absorb..." He muttered, bracing himself for the incoming pain.

The next moment, under the lantern's dim light, black energy slowly seeped into Gerhart through his hand.

"GH!!!!" Gerhart felt a terrible pain coursing through his body as if his foundation was changing. Luckily, perhaps because the rat was weak, it was a far cry compared to the pain when he absorbed Mylo and Hazel.

Half a minute later, the pain stopped. The rat carcass turned into dust.

"Hah... Hah... Fuck... That hurt..." Gerhart panted before checking himself.

However, he didn't find anything different.

"Damn... I wish I had the Appraisal or, at least, the Self Appraisal talent..." Gerhart muttered.

Appraisal was extremely rare, So rare that less than a handful had it within the Youvamor Kingdom, with a population of several million. Each one of them was a national treasure.

In contrast, Self Appraisal was considered one of the worst common trash talents one could have... Because it was pointless and useless. Any competent priest could cast Appriase Status, and seeing your status was redundant since you can't usually improve your talent, only your level.

Imagine saying status, only to see all your stats being F and having no skills. Or worse, having some of your stats below F, like intelligence, the proof of your stupidity on a status window.

However, Gerhart now found that such a talent was invaluable to him... Since he wanted to see his gains. And he couldn't bother Mother Roysa all the time.

"Man... I wish I encountered a monster with that talent... Although I don't recall them ever having it..." Gerhart said to himself.

Talents were related to the race you were born to. Just like how there were talented humans, there were gifted monsters... It was just that their aptitudes were usually more... Monster-like and less intelligent. You wouldn't see a Giant Rat talented in swordsmanship, anyway.

If anything, their talents are more likely to be related to the strengths of their race. For example, Giant Rats can have a sharper sense of danger, agility, and ferocity. They might also have enduring stomachs, resistance to disease and poison, and similar things. They might also have stronger jaws and teeth, a powerful tail, more powerful infection power, and other things related to their race.

Humans can also have some of these talents, but some, like Strong Tail, should be useless or invalid for humans. At least, Gerhart never heard of someone having it.

"Will I have that talent if I absorb enough rats? Will it be skipped? Unuseable? Or will it translate into something else?" Gerhart wondered.

However, he shook his head from the thought and got up. "I shouldn't bother myself with these things... Now, then..."

Gerhart turned his focus to the dead cockroach carcass. The rat started munching on it, and its upper half was missing.

"Would it work on it?" Gerhart wondered, wanting to test his theory.

After walking to the carcass, he stretched his hand and placed it on it...  and he could indeed absorb it.

"Hah... So it works even if half of it is missing. Perhaps the quality drops?" Gerhart guessed and started absorbing the roach.

Indeed, the pain Gerhart felt was much less significant, about half as intense. It wasn't a good thing, but a bad thing since he gained less.

"Tsk... I can't let too much of it go missing, or the effects are mediocre." Gerhart muttered and got up. "Let's continue..."

And so, Gerhart continued his sewer sweep.

Unbeknownst to him, a specific party planned on turning him into Dead Meat...

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Emerald Flame.

That was the name of a rising party of talented Dungeon Explorers and Adventurers. In their party were four members:

Flyx, the Emerald Sword. He was a warrior and leader of Emerald Flame and the second-born son of Viscount Camden. The name originated from a sword he got from his father, the Emerald Flame Sword. His talent in Aura was only equaled by his looks, insidious mind, and ambition.

Aeraf, the Emerald Shield. A bulky man clad in heavy armor, wielding a tower shield and a mace. A bit of a sociopath, he cared little about anyone who wasn't his close friend, treating them as tools. Flyx, his leader, was also his young master, so he joined his team as his guard.

Galya, the Emerald Arrow. A willowy archer in tight-fitting leather armor, wielding a bow and arrow as her weapon of choice. She was playful, peppy, and, most of all, greedy for money. She wouldn't hesitate to put an arrow in someone's skull for cash. She joined Emerald Flame because they were a means to an end... And she was a sucker for handsome, wealthy men like Flyx.

Yrenea, the Emerald Staff. A self-proclaimed prodigy, she was the main firepower of Emerald Flame, being a gifted and beautiful fire magician and the third daughter of a Baron. She boasted about being able to memorize anything and everything, and her intelligence and beauty were only matched by her overinflated ego. She joined because she was Flyx's childhood friend and fiancee and was directly subordinate to his family.

The four sat in Viscount Camden's manor's guest room.

Usually, their road to becoming a B-rank party should be smooth sailing... However...

"How did one of those trash survive?" Flyx asked with clenched teeth and fists.

"I am unsure, young master. I am sure we beat them to death and even cut their throats. From how much they were bleeding out, it should be impossible to survive." Aeraf said and took a swig from his ale.

"They died. I confirmed it. Their hearts stopped and stopped breathing." Galya pursed her lips.

"Flyx, are you sure it isn't someone who incidentally saw it and reported it? Surviving that should be impossible." Yrenea skeptically asked.

"I'm sure... After that warning from the old hag, I asked my father to investigate... It was an F-rank named Gerhart. He switched to the Adventurer's Guild yesterday with a recommendation later." Flyx said.

Yesterday, instead of using the teleport station to the 21st floor, they decided to take the long route for practicing. Incidentally, on the third floor, they spotted three newbies taking out a treasure from a treasure chest. And not just any treasure, but a precious skill book... One that Flyx desperately wanted.

Although Flyx was a sword user, his Swordsmanship Talent was only slightly better. Therefore, the Basic Swordsmanship skill book that could grant him years of experience with swords and allow him to use Aura Techniques with them was mouthwatering.

Unfortunately, although he had the money, there was no market for even a Count's son. The market price was three thousand Silver Coins, and the auction price could reach over ten thousand... Although he saved enough money to buy it, he was reluctant.

Although the annual income of Viscount Camden through tariffs, rents, taxes, and services from serfs was high, he spent most of his money on his lifestyle or taxes to the crown. Most of the remainder was reinvested into the territory, so only a fraction was left as spending money. Flyx's pocket money was 1,000 Silver Coins a year, which was very high considering all his needs were met, especially since he was the second son and not the heir!

A full plate mail armor was less than 1,000 Silver coins, and a warhorse or a trained slave was 250 Silver Coins. The worth of that book matched his Emerald Flame Sword! Perhaps even surpassing it!

Because of that, he didn't hesitate to order them to attack and kill them without asking to buy it. All he thought at the time was, "It is your fault for getting something so valuable while being so weak... It should belong to me."

His team, comprised of a ruthless bunch, didn't hesitate and immediately killed them, even triple-checking they died before taking the book and leaving. To avoid all suspicion, Flyx even used the Skill Book on the 4th floor in a secluded area.

And yet, one of those trashes survived and even told the Guild Master about it, labeling the 'Murderer' reputation on them. And murdering fellow guildmates was a taboo despite it happening all the time... It was just that everyone was careful not to be exposed. But since they got exposed, their reputation hit rock bottom.

This greatly affected their careers since, as murderers, their guild rank couldn't advance unless they did meritorious deeds to offset it... Which could take YEARS. During those years, they would be stuck with D-rank privileges, and access to higher-quality items and services was denied.

Even worse, the 'Murderer' reputation extended to their Adventurer license since the Dungeon Explorer's Guild and Adventurer's Guild were tight-knit allies. From now on, any future employer would know they are 'Murderers,' which means many requests were barred from them, and likewise, they couldn't advance their rank.

Although they didn't receive any murder charges due to lack of evidence, their careers took a hit that would be hard to recover from. Flyx's father couldn't help them in this regard.

"How do you know it is him, though? It isn't like he would openly admit it." Yrenea pointed out.

"He came to the guild with a recommendation letter, and there were many witnesses, and the description fit. Also, his armor had a stab wound in the stomach, right where I stabbed him. Somehow, the fucker was in perfect condition and even chatted with Abiah, The Rage Hand... And he even told him to come back to him." Flyx's expression turned ugly.

"Seriously?! Fuck..." Galya cursed. "Doesn't that mean we should avoid the Adventurer's Guild from now on? Who knows if Abiah would punch us when he is in a bad mood? That skill book cost us more than we gained." She said in discontent.

"So what do we do now, Young Master?" Aeraf angrily asked. "That bastard wasn't content on surviving. He even snitched on us. I should have smashed their heads in."

"I shouldn't have saved on mana and burned them to a crisp." Yrenea regretted.

"I should have cut their heads off instead of their necks." Galya pursed her lips.

"Too late to regret, and we can't do it ourselves... So we need to hire some low-lives to deal with him, a puny F-rank. It just so happens that I got word he started the Sewer Sweep request. My father has an insider in the City Guard. It shouldn't be challenging to figure out Gerhart's path. If he does another sweep tomorrow... 500 Silver Coins should do it, hehehe..." Flyx sinisterly laughed.

The others also showed menacing expressions, wanting to kill the son of a bitch who ruined their career.

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Meanwhile, Gerhart killed another four rats and three cockroaches and was about to kill his 5th cockroach of the day.

Crunch* Crunch* Crunch*

After stomping it to death, Gerhart sheathed his sword and drew his dagger.

"Well, let's see if it gives anything..." Gerhart muttered and cut off its head before absorbing the body.

However, this time, he didn't feel any pain or discomfort. The energy entered him... And that was it. The cockroach's body silently turned into dust.

"What's going on?" Gerhart wondered. "Is it because I already have its talent? Did it have an inferior copy?" He guessed. "But then, what happened to the rest of the energy? Did the relic absorb it?" He thought.

While thinking that, Gerhart collected the cockroach's head and continued walking on his patrol route, but then, he suddenly stopped.

"Hm?" Gerhart had a gut feeling. He couldn't explain what it was, but he felt something good was to his left on the other side of the waterway.

"Oh? What's that?" Gerhart muttered and flashed the lantern over. In an inconspicuous corner, Gerhart noticed a slightly unusual patch of moss covering a wall.

"Hm... I guess I have time to spare..." Gerhart muttered, crossing the waterway using one of the bridges.

Upon arriving at the moss-covered area, Gerhart more carefully observed it and noticed it was unnatural compared to the surroundings. It was as if someone deliberately put it there to hide something, but it was enough. It would be almost impossible to spot in the dark sewers, and the guards would likely not pay attention to it since they wanted to complete their duties as quickly as possible. Who would be sane enough to start looking at the sewer's filthy walls?

However, Gerhart had the Treasure Hunter talent, was leisurely enough, and stopped at the area long enough his Treasure Sense was triggered.

"Suspicious... Let's see if it hides something..." Gerhart muttered and removed the moss. What he found was a bunch of loose bricks.

"Oh? Interesting..." Gerhart muttered and gently removed the bricks, revealing two sealed boxes made from metal. Each of them could fit about two liters of water.

"Holy shit... Is this the fabled criminal stash?!" Gerhart widened his eyes in glee. "Thank you, Hazel... thanks to you, I have a sudden windfall!"

Gerhart looked around to confirm no one saw this before quickly stashing the two boxes in his bag without checking their content, placing the bricks and moss back into place, and leaving the scene.

"I'll check it later when I am somewhere safer... Hopefully, it isn't drugs..." Gerhart thought.