Lost in thought, Don spotted one of the overseers strolling over, looking quite content with itself.

Seeing the blood-red skull icon before its name, he knew it was aggressive, so he activated stealth and followed closely. He watched it slowly walk to the middle of the potato field. A red potion was already in his mouth. Then, with a single Backstab, his blade plunged deep into its back.

Blood sprayed, and a sizable damage number burst out alongside it.

[1,906!]

The orc turned in pain, raised its battle axe high, and swung down fiercely. Don immediately activated Evasion.

A notification from the system, appeared

[You have dodged the Orc Overseer’s Heavy Strike]

He raised his dagger and slashed its chest twice.

[449!]

[529!]

Its defense was noticeably higher than the Bruggs’. No wonder these things bullied them so brazenly.

But you couldn’t afford to get distracted in combat, especially not in a virtual game. Don learned that lesson quickly.

The orc’s axe swung around, and the blunt back of it struck him in the forehead. His vision blacked out instantly. ’Damn’

[You’ve been Stunned!]

A tearing pain shot through his body. When he came to, his HP bar had dropped to less than a quarter.

He swallowed a red potion immediately. Of the thirty-six stratagems, running away was the best.

The orc chased after him like a madman, cursing all the while. "Damn human! You’ve got some nerve, trespassing on orc territory! Prepare to die!"

Even while running, Don didn’t sheathe his dagger. He drew the Scout’s Bow in one smooth motion, nocked an arrow, and turned to fire over his shoulder. The shaft struck the orc in the shoulder.

[554!] 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

’Damnit, Frustrating. The bow’s damage was so inconsistent. Without skill bonuses, it was really only good for kiting.

The orc continued its relentless pursuit while Don slowly recovered HP through his potions. After running circles around the fair-sized potato field for roughly thirty seconds, his health had climbed back to seventy percent, and Evasion was off cooldown.

He turned immediately. The Scout’s Bow was already resting on his shoulder. As he brushed past the orc, his right hand lashed out reflexively, and the cold blade pierced its flesh.

Another nineteen-hundred-plus damage number bloomed in the air. The orc had been running too fast to stop cleanly, it staggered a few steps before turning around, giving Don enough time to dart forward and land a normal slash across its chest before it could react.

The creature raised its battle axe again, holding it high overhead. In the blink of an eye, Don’s right arm shot up, the dagger slashing toward its throat, a position completely unprotected by armor.

Although the orc looked clumsy and stupid, it wasn’t slow-witted. It knew very well that if that blow landed, its life was over. It immediately took a step back, which was exactly what Don had wanted. He pressed the advantage and struck again.

Enraged, the orc reversed its grip and swung the back of the axe at him. Don had anticipated this. He activated Evasion the moment the swing began, slipping around to its back, and landed a precise cut across its waist.

[2,906!]

Another weak point.

He immediately switched back to the Scout’s Bow and ran far away. For a rogue, trying to out-muscle a monster with skills on cooldown was just asking for trouble. Playing cautiously was the way of the rogue.

Seeing him retreat, the orc had no choice but to give chase. Unfortunately for it, Don kept his route locked within the cleared safe zone, leaving it completely at his mercy.

When the Orc Overseer’s HP dropped to ten percent, it finally couldn’t hold back. Suddenly it stopped in its tracks, body trembling, and let out a roar. "Slaves! Come help me! There’s an intruder!"

Unfortunately, the nearest Brugg was at least thirty meters away, well beyond the range of its voice. And besides, if Don had been that Brugg, he would have been hoping the overseer died as quickly as possible, so he could finally escape and go home to his wife and children.

While the orc was still shouting, Don sprinted up behind it. Backstab had just come off cooldown, and with ample aiming time, he landed it precisely on the creature’s waist. A powerful thrust, and a damage number that genuinely delighted him.

[7,867!]

In excruciating pain, the Orc Overseer clutched its back and turned around, raising its axe one more time. But Don didn’t give it the chance. His dagger flashed twice across its neck.

[4,532!] [4,949!]

Unfortunately the second hit was wasted, the first strike of the combo had already killed it.

The orc let out a pained whimper and collapsed heavily to the ground. Don’s experience bar jumped forward another five percent in a single burst.

He did the math quickly. It had taken him seven minutes to clear all the Bruggs in the area for less than three percent experience. But it had only taken him four minutes to kill the overseer for almost double the gain. More than twice as efficient.

He glanced ahead, and was pleasantly surprised. Potato fields like this stretched out in every direction, and almost every one of them had a tall figure patrolling through it.

His hands ached from excitement. ’Forget it. I’m not leaving until I’ve cleared this entire base camp.’

Youth was his capital. At worst he’d go home, sleep for seven hours, and bounce back good as new.

But what really set his pulse racing was what happened next. When he kicked the overseer’s heavy body aside, the ground didn’t just shimmer with golden light, a piece of equipment with a deep, lustrous black sheen tumbled out onto the dirt.

The Orc Overseer had generously dropped two gold coins, enough to buy a hundred low-level health potions. As for the equipment, Don picked it up with a mix of excitement and regret.

It felt heavy and solid in his hand. Metal armor, without a doubt, and its grade and attributes were excellent.