"Krrr!"
"Is it here?"
In a scorching, volcanic black mountain riddled with deep holes and narrow tunnels, Lucien followed the Glimmergnaw all the way to its destination.
"Why do you live in such a place?" he muttered, wiping sweat from his brow.
Although he complained, he had to admit the little guy knew every path and hidden route in this part of the forest, and he didn't even have to use loyalty points to order it.
It effortlessly dodged every monster along the way, guiding Lucien safely to the mountain.
The only issue was that its speed was just a tad too slow.
But he couldn't really blame it, could he?
Now that he was close, a flicker of excitement stirred in his chest at the thought of the upcoming reward.
After all, if he could extract even 2 points of agility from each Glimmergnaw he found, wouldn't he become overpowered in no time?
'So what if I have no attack skills? I can still run faster than anything else.'
Lucien was already grinning at the thought when suddenly the ground trembled, and a deep, guttural roar echoed through the mountain, shaking the very air around him.
"Roarrrrrrrrrr!
The roar wasn't especially loud or piercing, but it was close and unmistakably a warning, sent by some kind of monster dwelling in this volcanic mountain.
"Shit, a monster. Little guy, run!"
Hearing the roar and feeling the inexplicable chill in the air, Lucien couldn't help but feel he'd just jinxed himself by being too confident a moment ago.
However, just as he was about to bolt, he noticed something strange.
The little guy, who would usually run at the slightest threat, was instead bouncing happily, almost dancing in place.
It looked up at him with excitement, eyes sparkling, especially focused on his hand… clearly expecting something shiny as a reward for completing its task.
Seeing its reaction and remembering the order he gave, a dreadful realization crept into Lucien's mind.
So, Lucien asked, a little nervously,
"Little guy... is... is this your home?"
A cold drop of sweat slid down his temple.
Only now, after hearing that roar, did he finally realize—maybe the rodent in front was just a youngling and thus was an F-rank monster.
And if that was the case, then there must be monsters stronger than him deeper in this nest?
After all, who else would carve tunnels wide enough for him to walk through?
In his excitement, he had almost walked straight into the gutter with a big, stupid grin on his face.
'Oh my god, why am I so stupid?'
Lucien cursed himself internally as he saw the little guy nodding happily, its gaze still locked onto his hand, clearly waiting for the promised reward.
The only solace for him was that the monster just rorared one time and went silent. It seemed not interested in coming out.
'Fortunately....'
Lucien breathed a sigh of relief and ordered,
"Let's get out of here, it isn't safe."
Although the little guy was just a monster, he still had some good feelings towards him.
So, he ordered and turned around, intending to return outside.
He would think of finding other Glimmergnaw when he was safe.
"Krrr....krrrr..."
"Hmm?"
Lucien frowned. Even after giving a direct order, the rodent didn't follow like before. Instead, it tilted its head in confusion, eyes fixed intently on his hand.
It was clearly waiting for its reward and had absolutely no intention of moving until it got it.
"Can you be a little less greedy?" Lucien muttered, utterly speechless.
But sensing the growing danger in this place, he sighed in defeat, reluctantly pulling out a gold coin.
He pinched it between his fingers and held it up, letting it gleam in the dim light.
"Okay, this is your reward. Now… let's go, alright?"
He was just about to toss it over when—
"Whoosh—!"
A dark figure suddenly lunged from the side of the tunnel, snatching the coin mid-air and vanishing in a blink.
"Who—?"
Lucien barely registered the blur before his hand was empty.
The little rodent, on the other hand, was furious.
It let out an aggressive, high-pitched roar and darted toward the direction the figure had vanished, only to stumble and flail helplessly, its low agility making pursuit impossible.
'Damn it. Let's just get the hell out of here.'
Lucien thought, intending to leave right away. He didn't want to stand in the shadow.
But before he could move, the tunnel suddenly trembled beneath his feet once again.
Then, from the darkness ahead, rows upon rows of glowing eyes emerged, where he saw a large number of Glimmergnaws.
Some were similar to the little guy, while most of them were significantly larger, pouring out from the shadows and surrounding the tunnel entrance in front.
"Grrrrrkkk..."
But no matter who it was, all of their eyes were fixed on him.
Seeing such a dreadful scene for the first time, Lucien's heart suddenly dropped.
'Damn! I was too late. I should have left this guy here.'
Lucien felt that he might have to use the defensive amulet given by his mother this time.
After all, a little F-rank Glimmergnaw might be nothing.
But a horde of them with unknown ranks and abilities? He wasn't sure if he could even outrun them, let alone fight.
'Hope they won't chase me down.'
Just as Lucien reached for the amulet on his chest, ready to crush it and flee for his life, a sudden prompt from the system flashed before him, halting him in his tracks.
Ding!
[You have loaned 1 gold coin to Glimmergnaw – E-Rank Rodent.]
[Subject shows no intention of repayment.]
[Debt collection attempt: Failed.]
[Analyzing transaction records…]
[Extracting compensation of equivalent value…]
[Congratulations! You gained: +2 Agility, Rodent's Greed (F-Rank) – EVOLVABLE]
'E-rank?'
The first thing Lucien noticed was the rank of the Glimmergnaw that stole his coin.
However, his attention was quickly diverted by something incredible that made him pause mid-way.
"Evolvable? What does that mean?"
He couldn't help but mumble in surprise, finding the new term next to the F-rank skill: Rodent's Greed. He even ignored the 2 points of Agility he had just gained.