Chương 102

Grid aggressively tossed a heavy rock over his shoulder. It hit a tree with a loud thwack.

"Where is it?!" Grid yelled, his voice echoing in the ruined clearing. He dug his armored hands into the dirt and shattered stone of the collapsed Yatan cave. He didn't care about the dust covering his heavy steel armor. He didn't care that the sun was starting to set. He wanted his Divine Shield.

"That crazy old thief," Grid grumbled, tossing another rock.

"He stole hundreds of millions of won from me! I'm going to find him and wring his neck!" Grid kicked a large pile of rubble. The rocks shifted, revealing a small, dark pocket near the back of the collapsed entrance. Grid squinted. He saw a faint green name tag hovering in the dark. He quickly moved the broken stones aside. Lying in the dirt was Doran, the NPC assassin who had dragged him into that minus level mess. Doran was covered in soot and bleeding from a nasty cut on his head.

Right next to him was a beautiful young woman in a torn, fancy dress. She was completely unconscious. Grid blinked. He totally forgot about them. When Malacus teleported and ambushed them earlier, Grid had been so focused on running away and saving his own items that the rescue quest he had gotten had completely slipped his mind. Doran coughed weakly, his eyes fluttering open. He looked up at Grid's soot-stained face.

"You..." Doran whispered, his voice full of absolute awe.

"You came back for us again." Grid froze.

"Uh. What?"

"When the cavern collapsed, I thought we were dead," Doran rasped, trying to sit up.

"But you stayed behind. You fought the dark mages and the Sixth Servant. You slew them and saved us again. You truly are a hero." Grid scratched his cheek. He definitely didn't do any of that. Rudra did. Grid had just been sitting in the dirt crying about his shield. But then, Grid remembered the quest. [Rescue the Earl's Esteemed Daughter] [Difficulty: S] [Clear Reward: 3, 000 gold, a low probability of becoming the Earl's son-in-law.] Three thousand gold. Grid's expression instantly changed.

He puffed out his chest and put on his most serious, heroic face.

"Of course I came back," Grid lied smoothly, grabbing a health potion from his belt and handing it to the assassin.

"I couldn't just leave you guys in the dark. A true warrior never abandons people in need." Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Doran looked like he was about to cry. He drank the potion, his health bar ticking up slightly.

"Thank you," Doran breathed out.

"Please. Help me carry Lady Irene. We need to reach Winston safely."

"Leave it to me," Grid said enthusiastically. He didn't mind the heavy lifting. He gently picked up the unconscious noblewoman and slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It wasn't very elegant, but with his high strength, she felt as light as a feather. They started the long walk down Rolf Mountain. Halfway down the dirt path, Irene groaned. Her eyes fluttered open. She panicked for a second, realizing she was bouncing on the shoulder of a armored stranger.

"Put me down!" Irene gasped, struggling weakly. Grid quickly set her down on her feet. She backed up against a tree, looking terrified.

"My Lady, it is alright," Doran said quickly, stepping forward and bowing.

"We are safe."

"Doran?" Irene said, her eyes welling with tears of relief. She looked at Grid.

"Who is this man?" Doran placed a hand over his heart.

"My Lady, this is the brave warrior who saved us. He slayed the dark mages the previous time and the Yatan's Servant this time to rescue us. If it wasn't for his selfless bravery, we would still be trapped in that dungeon." Irene's eyes went wide. She looked at Grid. Grid was covered in dirt, sweat, and monster ash. His armor was scratched, and his black hair was a messy bird's nest. But to Irene, he looked like a knight in shining armor straight out of a fairy tale. A bright red blush spread across her cheeks.

"You... you risked your life for me?"

"I was just doing my job, ma'am," Grid said, trying to sound cool while mentally calculating how much real-world money 3, 000 gold was worth.

"I will never forget this debt," Irene whispered softly, looking at her dirty shoes. They reached the gates of Winston just as the sun went down. The town guards instantly recognized the Earl's daughter. Horns blew, and a dozen soldiers rushed out to escort them. They were brought straight to the local lord's manor. Doran gave a full, glowing report to the Winston officials. He completely exaggerated Grid's heroics, painting him as the ultimate savior of the north. Grid just stood there and nodded along.

A massive flurry of golden windows popped up in Grid's vision. [Quest Cleared: Rescue the Earl's Esteemed Daughter] [You have rescued Irene from the Yatan Church!] [You have acquired 3, 000 gold.] [Affinity with Irene has reached the maximum.] [You have become the Earl's prospective son-in-law. As a member of the Earl's extended family, you are now entitled to collect a portion of the Winston territory's taxes.] Grid stared at the glowing blue text. His jaw dropped. Taxes. He was going to collect taxes.

He didn't just get a lump sum of gold; he got a permanent, passive income stream. Before he could even start cheering, a whisper icon blinked in the corner of his eye. It was from Jishuka. [Jishuka: We transferred the 50, 000 gold deposit to your account. The Tzedakah Guild honors its promises. Take your time, think about our offer, and let us know when you're ready to make items for us. We will talk more in Winston.] Grid opened his inventory. He looked at his gold balance. Fifty-three thousand gold.

He was practically hyperventilating. Fifty-three thousand gold was over sixty million won in real cash. He was rich. He was actually, finally rich. He had the Earl's daughter looking at him with heart-shaped eyes, the top guild in the game throwing money at him, and permanent tax rights. The pain of losing his Divine Shield vanished completely.

"I hit the jackpot," Grid whispered, tears of pure joy streaming down his face.

"I really hit the jackpot!" He didn't care about the game anymore today. He needed to celebrate in the real world.

"Log out!" Grid shouted happily. The virtual world of Winston faded away, leaving Grid feeling like he was sitting on top of the world.