This task card was noticeably different from the others, its purple hue standing out vividly.
Seeing Luca’s surprised expression, Old Charlie winked mischievously and said, “This is the best among the recent novice tasks. If you get the chance, I hope you can put in a good word for me with Miss Sophia.”
Luca couldn’t help but laugh.
This old man really knew how to curry favor. Unfortunately, he picked the wrong person. It was uncertain if Luca would even see Sophia again, let alone put in a good word for him.
Luca shook his head and said, “Sorry, I can’t help you with that. Just give me a regular task.”
“No, no, no!” Old Charlie panicked, jumped up, and stuffed the task card into Luca’s hands, waving his hands repeatedly. “It’s fine if you don’t say anything good. Just remember me.”
Everyone in the Iron Mountain Mages’ Association knew Sophia’s identity and personality. A boy favored by her, even if not in that way, was certainly someone extraordinary. Even if they couldn’t build a good relationship, they shouldn’t spoil it.
Thinking of this, Old Charlie slapped his forehead and pretended to remember something. “Oh my, how forgetful I am. I almost forgot that the Mages’ Association has a rule: the first time an Apprentice Mage takes a task, they must be given a staff.”
As he spoke, a flash of light appeared in his hand, and he produced a black staff from nowhere, handing it to Luca.
[Ding! You received a gift from Old Charlie: “Blackwood Staff (Black Iron Level)”!]
[Blackwood Staff (Black Iron): No level requirement, Magic Attack +15, Spirit Attribute +10, Usable by mages.]
A nearby mage was surprised and said, “Old Charlie, I didn’t know our association had such a…”
“Know nothing, get lost.” Before he could finish, Old Charlie glared at him and kicked him away.
Seeing this, Luca couldn’t help but feel emotional.
Having someone to watch your back really made a difference.
If it were him in his previous lifetime, he’d probably have to compete with other players for tasks. Where would he get a task and equipment handed to him by an NPC?
After expressing his gratitude, Luca didn’t refuse any further. He took out the purple task card from his pocket and opened it.
[Ding! You have received the novice task “Harvest Calming Grass”!]
[Description: Go to Starlight Lake outside Starlight City and harvest 10 stalks of Calming Grass, then deliver them to the apothecary Franklin on West Street.]
[Reward: Refreshing Potion (Black Iron Level), increases spirit attribute by 10 when used, can only be used once.]
Seeing the task reward, Luca’s eyes lit up.
No wonder Old Charlie said this was the best task at the Mages’ Association!
Calming Grass might be hard to find, but it wasn’t impossible with some effort. However, a potion like the “Refreshing Potion” that could enhance attributes was worth at least 10 gold coins per bottle!
In Eternal Continent, 10 copper coins equaled 1 silver coin, and 10 silver coins equaled 1 gold coin. With the server just launched, Luca estimated that the real-world exchange rate for game gold coins would make 1 gold coin worth at least 1,000 dollars.
This meant the task alone was worth 10,000 dollars!
Determined, Luca solidified his plan. He definitely needed to find a reliable backer in the future!
He then left the Mages’ Association.
Starlight Lake was located in Wind Plain to the east of the city, not too far away. Along the way, he saw many players wandering around like headless chickens. Thanks to Cassman’s earlier warning, no further incidents had occurred in the city.
It didn’t take long for Luca to leave Starlight City.
Under the blue sky and white clouds was an endless green plain, dotted with Slimes, Violent Rabbits, Goblins, and other low-level monsters. Many players were continuously spawning monsters in the area.
This plain was called Wind Plain, and it was much larger than it appeared.
It was home to various monsters, including some high-level ones. However, the area outside Starlight City had been cleared, leaving only low-level monsters for beginner players to practice on.
“Starlight Lake” was in the level 5 area of this novice zone. Luca spotted the massive silver lake from a distance.
He donned the Blackwood Staff, bringing his spirit attribute to 20 points and his attack power to 68 points.
The monsters outside the city were too low-level for him, so he headed straight for Starlight Lake without stopping.
Not far into his journey, a rabbit wielding a wooden club spotted him.
[lv3 Violent Rabbit (Common)]
[HP: 180/180]
[Attack: 55]
[Defense: 12]
[Skill: Heavy Stick Swing]
Luca glanced at the monster’s panel, continuing to walk calmly.
Although his attack power wasn’t high, it was more than enough to handle this common monster.
As Luca approached, the Violent Rabbit’s initially cute face turned vicious.
Its hind legs kicked off the ground, turning into a white blur charging at Luca.
At the same time, it swung its club viciously towards Luca’s crotch.
Heavy Stick Swing!
Faced with the swinging club, Luca’s mouth twitched as some unpleasant memories flashed through his mind.
His eyes turned cold. With a slight shift of his foot and a twist of his body, he easily dodged the rabbit’s incoming club.
At the same time, his staff began to glow with a faint white light.
Basic Spell!
Using it would deal 12 points of basic magic damage to the target!
Luca swung his staff in a wide arc, hitting the Violent Rabbit directly on the head.
“Bang!”
The magical glow exploded atop the rabbit’s head, sending it flying.
-82!
Before the rabbit even hit the ground, a crimson damage number appeared above its head, depleting more than half of its health instantly!
Luca quickly stepped forward, not giving it a chance to stand up, and swung his staff down again.
[Ding! You have killed “lv3 Violent Rabbit (Common)”, gaining 80 experience points!]
As the kill notification appeared, a surge of experience flowed into Luca’s body. Simultaneously, he was enveloped in the light of leveling up.
[Ding! Your level has increased to lv2. You have gained 10 free attribute points!]
[Current experience: 40/110]
Though Demonic Rune Mage was a hybrid class, it primarily relied on the enhancement of the spirit attribute. Hence, Luca allocated all his attribute points to spirit.
He then turned his attention to the rabbit’s corpse.
A copper coin caught his eye, making him smile.
It actually dropped loot!
Usually, low-level monsters didn’t drop items. It was undoubtedly his maxed-out luck attribute at work.
Luca walked over and happily picked up the copper coin.
Regardless of the world, the importance of money was undeniable, and this was true in the Eternal Continent as well. Players who wanted to improve their power quickly often resorted to Pay to Win strategies.
Luca’s family wasn’t well-off, so he didn’t have the spare money for such methods. However, with maxed-out loot drop rates, he could not only meet his own needs but also sell extra items for cash to improve his family’s living conditions.
While contemplating this, Luca took out a small knife he had prepared beforehand and skinned the Violent Rabbit’s corpse.
[Ding! You have obtained the material “Violent Rabbit Fur (Common)”.]
[You have learned the skill “Skinning”, current level: lv1.]
In the Eternal Continent, both monsters and herbs needed to be harvested by players, which could be troublesome. However, Luca’s maxed-out aptitude made learning anything significantly easier, so he wasn’t worried about it.
Storing the rabbit’s fur in his bag, Luca continued toward the deeper parts of Starlight Lake.
Although the monsters near Starlight Lake were slightly higher level than those outside Starlight City, they posed no challenge for Luca. Before long, he had collected 10 stalks of Calming Grass.
His level had increased to 5, and he also gained a new skill.
[Water Arrow Spell: Basic skill. Upon use, it deals 25 water attribute magic damage to the target. Cooldown time is 3 minutes, and it consumes 100 magic points.]
In the world of Eternal, skills are categorized into several tiers: Basic, Low, Intermediate, High, and Superclass. To acquire skills, players need to either level up, use Skill Scrolls, or seek out a profession mentor.
Although Luca had maxed-out aptitude and experience from his previous life, he wasn’t well-versed in mage skills. Therefore, he needed to find a magic mentor to learn new abilities.
Additionally, Luca had found 1 silver coin, 8 copper coins, and a Black Iron Level dagger.
Unfortunately, the dagger was for assassin class and he couldn’t use it, but it could still be sold for a few gold coins, which wasn’t too bad.
Having gathered enough Calming Grass, Luca didn’t linger. He returned to Starlight City and headed straight to the west street.
The west street was Starlight City’s commercial district, bustling with all kinds of shops—fruit vendors, tailors, blacksmiths, and more.
Inside these shops, many players could be seen working for NPCs.
