Hacking the Game Didn't Go as Intended [Part One]

CHAPTER 46: Valuable Insights

Meanwhile, in hushed voices not far away—

"Daisuke's pretty cool," a girl whispered to her friend, her gaze fixed on his retreating posterior. "But have you noticed? He hasn't said a single word to anyone. Do you think he might be... y'know, gay?"

Daisuke's eyebrows furrowed in irritation at their speculation.

"Or maybe he's just special," the other girl chimed in. "And Zephyr's like his service companion or something."

A vein throbbed visibly on Daisuke's temple, but he managed to keep his annoyance in check. Instead of proceeding to his usual seat, he finished his kebabs, placed the empty plate on an unoccupied table, and quietly exited the room.

***

"Hey, you," Thalia greeted as Daisuke approached the counter in the guild's main lobby. The din of the mingling adventurers filled the air. "Shouldn't you be eating and resting up for the next class? I'm just covering for Racine while she's on her lunch break, then I'll be right there."

"I was just curious, can I sell monster materials here?"

Thalia nodded, her eyes reflecting the genuine interest of someone passionate about their work. "Yes, but including Mana Crystals, we only accept a few kinds of materials at this counter," she responded as she rounded the counter to join him. "Follow me. I'll take you to the butcher shop."

A backdoor at the eastern wing of the lobby led to the aforementioned room. A hulking man in a bloodied pair of overalls paused his work on the goblin carcass that lay splayed on his table to greet his guests.

"Oh, Thalia... to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" he called, one hairless eyebrow raised in question. "And who do we have here?"

Thalia made the introductions, her voice warm with friendliness. "Cleave, this is Haxks. Haxks, Cleave."

Cleave greeted Daisuke with a jovial demeanor, extending a gloved hand. "Pleased to meet you."

Daisuke's gaze flickered to the bloodied hand with little interest.

Cleave chuckled heartily at the slight awkwardness. "Bahahaha! Sorry about that; my mind is still partly engrossed in my work. So, what brings you both here today?"

"Haxks here was asking about selling monster materials, so I figured I would bring him to the specialist," Thalia explained.

"Is that right?" the man grinned, his white teeth in stark contrast to his chestnut facial hair.

"I need to get back to the counter," Thalia explained as she scooted for the door. "Cleave, I'll leave him in your care. And, Haxks, I'll see you in class."

"Hahaha! Leave it to me!" laughed the man, bloodied hands cupping his hips. "She's quite the looker, isn't she?"

"So will I be able to sell the materials here?"

The man's grin faded disappointedly. "You're pretty uptight for a youngster."

"I need to get back to class soon, so I'd rather get straight down to business."

Cleave playfully sighed, theatrics oozing from his voice. "You're no fun. So, where are they?"

Daisuke walked over to a vacant table, summoned his inventory with a simple gesture, and then began to lay out the materials he had acquired, one by one.

[Slime Essence x4]

[Troll Essence x3]

[Horned Rabbit's Hide x16]

[Malevocroak's Legs x16]

[Forest Imp's Tail x19]

[Exiled Hilitroll Chief's Tusk x2]

[Lipanthyer's Fang x16]

Cleave briefly scanned the materials, his arms crossing his chest. "Okay, but where's the rest of the monster?"

"Eh?" Daisuke was baffled.

It was only after Cleave's question did his eyes widen in realization. The truth hit him like a lightning bolt. He had always assumed that monsters simply disappeared over time after being killed, and their drops magically whisked away into his inventory. But that was only the case for a standard player, and it had become painfully obvious he was much more than that.

He had been on such a crazed and relentless killing spree that he never once bothered to check what could be salvaged from a carcass after a monster fell. Even the Hilitroll Field Boss had been left abandoned in that gaping hole without a second thought.

Cleave's suggestion brought Daisuke back to the present. "The next time you slay a monster, bring the entire corpse to me."

Daisuke nodded, his gaze contemplative. In this virtual world, monsters were akin to the animal population of the real world—sure they were ugly, but most of them were edible and surprisingly very delicious. Their meat was called monstron.

"I'll separate the meat from the materials," Cleave continued to explain. "Both can be sold here or on the market. Now for the items you currently have, I'd suggest selling the Slime and Troll Essence to the apothecary; they'll pay more for items they actually use in potion-making."

Daisuke listened attentively, absorbing the information.

"I don't mind taking the Forest Imp's Tail and Malevocroak's Legs off your hands," Cleave offered. "But I would suggest you sell the others to a Blacksmith, or have him use them to forge weapons or equipment. That Hilitroll's tusk, in particular, is a relatively rare material. Field and Dungeon Bosses are notorious for yielding great materials for forging equipment."

Daisuke stroked his chin in contemplation. I didn't really get anything noteworthy from the Elemental King, but I did receive the tusks from the Exiled Hilitroll Chief. Maybe I should consider hunting it one more time—and, while I'm at it, there are a few experiments that I'd like to test out.