Rowan restocked his ammunition. After witnessing the true destructive power of the AA-20, he put in an order for more supplies, including additional dragon fire rounds. He also pre-ordered one of their new weapons in the assault rifle category.
If he were to raid with a party, blasting a shotgun around might not be the best idea.
On top of that, he bought another gun.
A handgun, but more like a handcannon. A handheld anti-material cannon.
The world once had the Desert Eagle. But now, introducing the Mountain Eagle.
It still chambered a .50 caliber bullet, but upgraded from the .50 AE it traditionally used to the .50 BMG, the same round famously used in the Barrett anti-material sniper rifle.
And it was a one handed weapon.
--
[Status]
Level: 8
Class: Assassin (E) / Soul Reaper (Tier 2, SSS)
[Stats]
Strength: 23
Agility: 16
Vitality: 16
Dexterity: 17
Magic: 8
Status Points: 0
--
After clearing the dungeon break and restocking, he hit a couple of raids on his way home to test his new weapon.
With a single shot, the giant pistol roared with a boom so loud it shook the air, blasting clean through the head of a massive green orc. The damage was almost equal to that of the AA-20 but condensed into a single point of impact.
The boss of an E+ rank dungeon dropped dead just like that.
"Why isn't everyone using one of these!"
Rowan was genuinely surprised by its destructive power, not having considered that the gun alone cost nearly six thousand dollars and each magazine of twelve rounds cost another fifty dollars per bullet.
Most hunters would burn through an entire raid's profit on ammunition alone.
Money was not currently a problem for Rowan since he could keep soloing dungeon gates, but that was not the case for most people.
Still, his days of comfortable soloing were coming to an end.
Even after clearing five gates on his way home, he had not leveled up once.
The leveling mechanic of the real system was brutal. You always had to fight on equal footing or against stronger enemies to level up.
If you fought something too easy, your level could stagnate and never move again.
That was how the system balanced itself. The only way to get stronger was to always take risks.
If Rowan were just another hunter in it for the money, farming comfortable gates was what most people did. Low risk of injury and a stable high income.
Only the truly ambitious, and there were very few of them, would risk their lives chasing strength.
At the current stage of the hunter age, most people's goal was simply money.
Which was why hunters who awakened at E-rank stayed at E-rank and never climbed, because climbing meant risking their lives against D-rank monsters.
People saw their rank and decided their own ceiling.
An invisible collar they could remove at any time but almost never did.
'I wonder if I could change people's mindset. But how?'
Rowan was living proof that with enough determination you could go remarkably far. Even without the [Soul Reaper] class, he had pushed to level 50 with nothing but an E-rank [Assassin].
At the very least, he wanted the entire hunter population to aim for level 10, because at that point the system would send a notification offering either an [Extra Skill] or an [Upgrade to an Existing One].
He walked home along the same old route he used.
His back carried so much now that it resembled a mountain expedition kit more than a backpack.
A specially made axe that blood did not stick to as his new weapon of choice, the trusty AA-20, a Mountain Eagle holstered at his side, and a pack nearly filled to the brim with mana cores.
And of course, on his way back he decided to stop by the hunter shop run by the old uncle.
{Press the bell to call}
The front was empty save for a single bell placed on the countertop. Rowan dinged it.
"Coming!" The voice that answered was not the old man's. It was a familiar one Rowan had heard somewhere before.
It was Lee.
"Rowan?!" Lee was surprised. It had only been half a day since they last saw each other and now here Rowan was.
As a mage, Lee could sense the energy within his backpack was somewhat less than the last time they had met.
"It really was you in the picture," Rowan said.
He was not jumping to conclusions based on appearance.
It genuinely was Lee. What a happy coincidence!
"Your father still accepts mana cores, right?" Rowan set his heavy bag down and pulled out around 30 mana cores for sale. He was always happy to support a local business.
Lee, who had never seen this many mana cores in one place in his entire life, felt his mind go numb. "Are you really just starting out?" It had not even been a full week since he first raided with Rowan, and he was certain Rowan's timer had been at zero back then.
And he was E-rank. The same as Lee himself.
Either the system AI was bugged or Rowan was some kind of SSS-class hunter hiding his true power for reasons unknown.
But what kind of powerhouse used a gun?
"I just work hard. And you can too, with enough of it," Rowan said as Lee processed the mana cores, cleaning the blood and filth from each one before bagging them and shouting toward the back of the house.
"Dad!!"
"Coming!" The old man emerged, his shirt damp, not from sweat but from something else entirely. Rowan caught a whiff of fragrant herbs and meat.
Someone was steaming something.
"Oh, it's you. Are you free today? I am making homemade dumplings. My secret recipe." He laughed, his belly bouncing with it.
"You have to try my dad's dumplings, Rowan. Before we came here he was the number one chef in town!" Lee said proudly, presenting his father like a trophy.
"You two know each other?" Uncle pointed between Lee and Rowan.
"Yes. My name is Rowan. Your son and I have met before." Rowan introduced himself formally.
"Good, good, good. My name is Zhong, Lee's father." Uncle Zhong came out from behind the counter and shook Rowan's hand with enthusiastic energy.
"Now come, the dumpling is almost ready. You must try one before you leave!" With a smile as warm and innocent as Uncle Zhong's, how could Rowan refuse.
"Fine, but I should warn you, I have tasted a very unique dumpling before." Rowan had once eaten dumplings made by the Sword Saint herself, filled with DRAGON meat, so his bar for being impressed by food was set considerably high.
"Hoho, challenge accepted!"
With that, the store was closed up and the three of them headed inside.