Bread put the liquor bottle away and indicated a seat. Ark looked at Bread and hesitated. He hadn’t noticed it because of Buksil but the situation was quite serious. Bread and Redian were his enemies. And it would be difficult for Ark to avoid both their attacks in this narrow cave. He couldn’t guarantee his odds even in a 1-on-1 fight. It wasn’t necessary to talk about 2 against 1. But it wasn’t possible to run away. Even if he could get away, Bread already noticed the relationship between Ark and Buksil. If he didn’t then he wouldn’t be waiting for Ark in a place like this. The moment Ark tried to escape then Bread would use Buksil as a hostage.
‘By the way, Bread’s attitude seems a little different from before. He’s not attacking recklessly like last time.’
When Ark didn’t lower his guard to sit down, Bread explained the situation. The reason for this situation went all the way back to Bosaga village. When Ark had set the guards on Bread and Redian, they had planned to escape from Bosaga. They escaped the guards and hid around the outskirts of the village. They planned to track Ark when he left the village. But it was the bandit group that caught Bread’s attention. The thieves who missed Ark had captured Baekgu and dragged him out of the village. And then they hung him upside down and tortured him to get Ark’s next destination.
“Then I appeared.”
Bread bragged. Even though there were 10 thieves, Bread and Redian were furious about the animal cruelty. After rescuing Baekgu, they decided to return the pitiful dog to his owner. It was only after they asked Baekgu that they discovered he was in Ark’s party.
‘Isn’t that like jumping from the frying pan to the fire? This stupid dog!’
Ark shot a glare at Baekgu who was just eating in a corner. However, Baekgu had his own reasons for telling them Ark’s destination. Baekgu didn’t tell the thieves Ark’s destination no matter how much he was tortured. He knew the goal of the thieves was Buksil. However, Bread’s goal was Ark. As long as Buksil was okay, he honestly didn’t care what happened to Ark. But the biggest reason he blabbed about Ark’s destination was to get back to Buksil.
“Ugh, Ark….. I’m disappointed.”
Baekgu also smelt of alcohol.
“I heard everything from Bread-nim.”
‘Why is he referring to Bread so formally while talking informally to me?’
The dog crept closer to the pig when he saw Ark frowning. Since the entire group was drunk, Baekgu’s nerves had become stronger.
“What are you looking at? Didn’t Bread-nim ask you for an honourable warrior’s fight during your confrontation at sea? Aren’t you the one who deceived him using various lies and ran away? Are these the actions of Hero Maban’s descendant? Aren’t you embarrassed? I’m disappointed, disappointed! Ah. The elder believed in you so much and even gave you the Three Marvel’s fragment……”
“What? Embarrassed? Disappointed?”
Ark glared back. But Baekgu just snorted and took a gulp from the bottle. That’s right. Baekgu had instantly blabbed about Ark’s destination for this reason. Although he was branded a traitor, he still felt pride as a member of the honourable Wolrang clan. Furthermore, Bread was the one who saved him from the thieves. After Bread explained the reason why, Baekgu became indignant and guided Bread here for ‘justice.’
“That’s right. You made the mistake!”
Buksil shook an empty bottle and shouted. Ark’s blood pressure instantly soared.
‘These brats really…..!’
Buksil and Baekgu had waited with Bread for Ark. After one day, two days, three days…… They were bored waiting for Ark after such a long time so Bread decided on a drinking part and Baekgu and Buksil became drunk. Baekgu and Buksil then shouted in unison.
“Shameful! Coward! Accept a fair showdown!”
‘This group is really annoying me.’
The pig and dog were causing a huge commotion. No, it was inevitable sooner or later. Right now the drunkards weren’t the problem.
“Why is this happening? What did I do that made you pursue me like this?”
When Ark raised his voice angrily, Bread scratched his head and murmured.
“Well, that…. The reason is…… It doesn’t matter right now. It is unrelated to why I’m here now. Since my competitive spirit has been fired up.”
“Competitive spirit?”
“I can’t give up now that we’ve come this far. Isn’t that right?”
“That’s just you! This is a nuisance to me!”
Bread waved his hand with a serious expression.
“I’ve been reflecting.”
“Reflecting?”
“Yes, when I first met you I thought you were a cowardly guy who ran away. But I asked Baekgu. There was a situation then. You needed to create an Immortality Pill? I realized that I was wrong once I reflected. I just wanted to beat you to death without questioning the circumstances. Anyway, I will forget about the past after knowing the situation….. That’s why I went to the guild and prepared this.”
Bread took a scroll out of his bag and handed it to him.
-Warriors Challenge. Bread=Ark
High ranking members of the Warrior’s guild can issue this challenge.
The duel will proceed immediately when the opponent who receives this agrees. When the duel starts, nobody except for the users concerned can participate. Unlike regular PVP battles, no penalties are applied. You will not become chaotic if the opponent if killed. If you die than you won’t drop any items and will be revived on the spot. However the winner of the duel will take 500 fame from the loser.
“Now it doesn’t matter if you win or lose.”
Bread looked at Redian and confirmed it.
“Is this okay?”
“I don’t know, I’m already tired of this.”
“As expected, only you understand my feelings. I love you.”
“Shut up you idiot.”
Redian turned her head and nervously muttered while eating beef jerky. Bread grinned at her cute reaction and turned back to Ark.
“How about it? The conditions aren’t bad right?”
“……”
Bread’s suggest was very unexpected. Over the past month, Ark had been plagued by the thieves and Bread. The thieves were taken care of for the moment. Only Bread and Redian remained. But Bread was suddenly asking for a 1-on-1 showdown. He even prepared a duel challenge so there was no need to worry about the death penalty.
‘This isn’t a bad offer. If I win then I can even receive 500 fame. Although I don’t have any choice but to accept!’
If Ark rejected the challenge then his relationship with the pair would continue to be hostile. Then he would have to fight against Bread and Redian on the spot. In such a situation, the percentage of victory was 0%.
“Okay, I accept the challenge.”
“You made a good decision.”
“So give me some time to prepare for the duel. I need to rest and repair my equipment. You should also sober up in case it affects your capabilities.”
“……You’re not going to run away again?”
“You would just kill me if I run away from a formal challenge.”
“Oh, kill you? That would be a petty thing to do.”
“Let’s stop talking.”
“I understand. Then let’s start in 30 minutes.”
Bread withdrew and started to inspect his bayonet and equipment. Ark also sat in a corner opposite Bread.
‘I inevitably accepted the challenge but…..’
Ark was connected in his own way to PVP. Bread had considerably misunderstood a part of Ark’s character. Ark had avoided fighting Bread so far because of two reasons. One reason was Redian and the other reason was the situation was also cursed whenever he encountered them. He had no choice but to run away but Ark’s original character wasn’t the type to avoid a fight. There was no reason to avoid a 1-on-1 fight without any penalties. No, Bread was clearly a quite difficult person. Now he didn’t need to worry about the death penalty. But he hadn’t accepted the challenge without thinking.
‘……If I fight then I have to win!’
Although there was no death penalty, he would still lose 500 fame if he lost. Losing 500 fame wasn’t a small penalty.
‘But the prospect of success isn’t that high if I think about it. Bread was level 410 when he last checked. Wouldn’t it have obviously become higher? I have the dark attribute bonus but Bread can use Beast Spirit Possession to raise his stats.’
Ark had considered Bread a few times. In particular, Ark was interested in Bread’s special skill Beast Spirit Possession. In fact, Ark had thought Beast Spirit Possession was better than his dark attribute bonus at first. But he later confirmed that it wasn’t a problem. His dark attribute bonus raised all stats by 50% which included useful ones like strength, wisdom or even luck. But Beast Spirit Possession was a skill which selected the stat to be raised. Moreover, the animal spirits could only be stacked 3 times. If he stacked the Beast Spirit Possession then he could raise his abilities by 150%. Furthermore, the animal spirits of Beast Spirit Possession had different characteristics so it was possible to switch characteristics whenever he wanted. The movement of a dolphin was possible with Beast Spirit Possession or even it can even cause a disease like ‘rabies’ with the dog Beast Spirit Possession.
‘But there is no substitute for my dark attribute bonus. I am level 383. Bread is 41 levels higher than me so there is still level difference. When considering Bread’s capabilities, the ratio of victory is 4:6…..’
That was his conclusion when thinking positively. Therefore some preparations were required to win. Ark busily moved his hands as he started the preparations. In this situation, Ark’s most reliable skill was Survival Cooking! Ark made various dishes at extravagant speed and ate them.
Secondary Effects Information Window
* Food effects
Tuntun Roast – Strong Chicken Breast Salad- Herb Soup- Fried Shrimps -Lightly Grilled Poco Leg- Slime Marinated Meat- Ratosu Steak- Monkfish Mushroom Soup
Total stats raised by the food effects: Strength +65, Stamina