Volume 5 Chapter 5 - The old man runs on the snow (1/2)

Sorry for the long absence, I tried to finish the chapter but I barely got through most of this chapter after posting the previous chapter and was caught up with IRL stuff and the translations had to slow down and it might be slowed down even further as I have my priorities elsewhere. I hope you guys understand and I wish everyone a merry Christmas.

We finally arrived at the village of Snow and Ice, Kritarus.

Although it was possible to get some form of winter clothes in Grannel, since it was a warm city all year long, it wasn’t possible to get any decent winter clothing in the city.

Adventurers were capable of gaining heat and cold resistances as we leveled up but the cold weather was still chilly.

[Raptor, it’s amazing how you’re always energetic even in this weather.] (Yuuya)

I stroke my partner’s head as he was not only fast, but also resistant to the weather as well. Normally, reptiles were beings that were sensitive to temperature changes and did not appear in dungeons where the temperature was extremely low, but raptors were the exception.

Even during the game, adventurers often used Raptors as mounts when travelling around the game. Thinking back, if the mounts were unusable in cold weather then it might become frustrating for the players. That might even explain why Raptors were the exceptions since they were designed that way.

It’s interesting that such a meta-defining concept was implemented thanks to the game.

Til’s teeth began to chatter as she was shivering from the cold weather until she couldn’t withstand the weather and tightly hugged Luna from behind.

Luna quickly lowered her fox tail due to the sudden surprise.

[Luna, you’re sooooo warm~~~.] (Til)

[So cold, let go of me Til.] (Luna)

Luna was flailing around trying to get Til to let go but Til was relentless as she stretched out her hands towards her tail trying to grab it. It felt like their friendship might be at risk at this rate.

Let’s be sure to get some winter clothing for Til as soon as possible.

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After leaving Raptor at the town’s stable, we went towards the shopping district where we got everyone a set of winter clothing that consisted of a thick fur jacket, boots that went halfway up our shins and a hat that covered our ears. Considering the effectiveness of our current equipment, it was too difficult for us to remove them in favour of a comfortable set of clothing so we wore the clothing over the equipment instead.

Our jacket was made using the fur of a reindeer-type monster, the Snow Caribou.

It was extremely soft, had an extremely high heat retention and was waterproof as well, making it extremely suitable for winter clothing. It was Kritarus special product that was often exported. It’s quality was as high as it’s price. Even though equipment and clothes made from monster materials were often more expensive than normal materials, this time itss price was still a notch higher than that. Even if we were to compromise and got ourselves a normal fur coat, then we would realise our mistakes very quickly, especially in the dungeon.

[Fuu, this coat is amazing. It’s so warm.] (Til)

[I agree. However, it’s extremely thick and heavy, making it hard to move my arms. It might affect our accuracy when using our bows. I’m also worried that the hat might be dulling my sense of hearing since it’s covering my ears… Although it might be better than completely losing any feeling of my ears to frostbite and being able to shoot the bow.] (Phil)

[Uhn. I’m worried about that too. I might be able to get used to it once I fire a hundred arrows though. Since I’m feeling sluggish now, I might do that right after dinner.] (Til)

Til loved playing pranks and tricks onto us but when it came to work, she was extremely critical and constructive, especially with regard to bows and dungeon explorations.

[Us front-liners have to practice fighting the snow as well.] (Yuuya)

[Uhn. Luna will do her best!] (Luna)

[It certainly feels that way. I’m not too sure if I’ll be able to move well in this environment.] (Selene)

I’ll have to remember to check everyone’s condition before we enter the dungeon.

[Now that we’re done with the clothes, let’s start worrying about our food.] (Til)

[Before that, we have to head to the guild first. We have to confirm the transferring of details for Grannel and change our base of operations to Kritarus before tomorrow otherwise our exploration tomorrow will be shortened.] (Yuuya)

[Ughh, the cheese hotpot looks so far away~~] (Til)

The sulky Til reluctantly threw a piece of candy into her mouth as she settled down quickly.

I want to eat the cheese hot pot as soon as possible too so let’s hurry up.

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We finally completed the tedious procedures in the guild however it was a little unsettling that there were only several adventurers in the guild.

After visiting our inn and leaving our luggage in our room, we entered a reputable store in the city which served a delicious mellow cheese hot pot.

[Cheese, cheese!] (Til)

[Sticky sticky!] (Luna)

[Kyu!]

The boisterous duo and Erik were restless due to hunger while chanting “Cheese pot cheese pot” as the waitress arrived before quickly bowing and headed back to the kitchen.

[I’m extremely sorry but we’ve run out of Torotoro cheese for tonight. We can’t serve the cheese hot pot for tonight.] (Waitress)

[What about tomorrow? Will it be available tomorrow?] (Yuuya)

[Currently there isn’t an estimated time as to when we can serve it. We won’t be able to give you an exact time.] (Waitress)

Luna and Til looked like the world was about to end.

[Isn’t it possible for you to get the item? Since the monster respawn every week, shouldn it be possible for you to get the item from any adventurer who happen to come across the item? Are there any special circumstances ?] (Yuuya)

[A month ago, the Grand Ice General spawned in the dungeon and adventurers have stopped entering the dungeon. That is why we haven’t been able to get any monster drops for the past month.] (Waitress)

I didn’t expect a general-tier monster to appear in the city. Coupled with the small number of adventurers and the unusually high cost of the Snow Caribou fur jacket, I was convinced.

[I understand. In that case, could you serve us your recommendations? Also, please order us an appropriate amount since these children could eat an extremely large amount. We’ll need about enough food for seven people.] (Yuuya)

[I understand. I’ll immediately prepare your order for seven portions.] (Waitress)

The waitress bowed and left.

[Ughh, Yuuya-niisan, my stomach is completely in the cheese pot mood you know…. I won’t be satisfied like this.] (Til)

[..Luna is disappointed too. Even though Luna has been looking forward to it..] (Luna)

[I feel the same way, but if there really was a general-class monster that spawned, then it can’t be helped.] (Yuuya)

[it’s true. If a normal adventurer tried to enter the dungeon, it would practically be suicide.] (Phil)

[Yuuya-ojisama, Phil-san.The two of you seem to understand the situation. Just what is the Grand Ice General?] (Selene)

[General-class monsters were in other words, considered a boss monster. It’s a boss that specialises in speed and wanders the dungeon while mounted on its horse. With its ridiculously high speed while mounted, you would immediately be eliminated if you happened to encounter it. In otherwords, you would be hunting in a situation where you would never know if the monster would appear out of nowhere. Furthermore, it has a troublesome characteristic where it would never disappear even if a week has passed. In fact, it would only disappear after two months.] (Yuuya)

Normal bosses would never leave its room.

However, the general-class monsters were different. It was already extremely difficult to fight a boss monster without having the opportunity to recover your stamina and strength as well as making other preparations for the battle in front of the room. The fact that the generals were all level 45 made it even more difficult.

In addition, dungeon bosses were a certainty in entirely from its spawn location, characteristic and behaviour. However the general-class monsters would only spawn with a small percentage chance in advanced dungeons above level 40. Which meant that for two months, the dungeon would effectively be considered a wild dungeon. In another sense, it was a natural disaster.

[Uhn. In that case, we can go and defeat it! We’ll go into the dungeon and hunt it and we will return immediately for the cheese hot pot afterwards! We’ll be able to find the Torotoro cheese and eat the cheese hot pot!] (Luna)

[That does sound like a good plan. Fufufu, I’ll even kill a dragon for the hot pot!] (Til)

Their hatred towards their obstacles was horrifying as they were full of motivation.