Zenith Online: Rebirth of the Strongest Player

After leaving the old shack in a remote part of Gena Village, Kieran opened a video call with Altair.

Altair's flabbergasted expression filled Kieran's view as he flailed his arms. "How did one hour turn into over three?! I sent you more than one message, and in one of them, I explained a party has already entered the Difficult setting! It won't be long before they clear it."

Kieran was surprised by this piece of information. "That's fine. In fact, it's music to my ears. Someone else clearing that setting paves the way for an even better achievement…."

Altair frowned and felt Kieran was up to something. "What are you getting at? If they clear it, only one difficulty remains. Don't tell me you want to clear something like that…."

"Precisely," Kieran answered with an excited gleam in his eyes.

If not the highest difficulty setting for a Beginner Dungeon, what could give him the burst of adrenaline he sought?

Altair sighed and shook his head but relented.

A few seconds later, he grinned as well. "How ballsy of you, but I'd be lying if I said the rewards didn't interest me. Just hurry up over here!"

Kieran ended the call a few moments later after directing Altair to continue his search for party members.

Even after three hours, he had yet to find players that met Kieran's given requirements. But because of their earlier spar, Altair couldn't help but feel excited rather than taken advantage of.

'Let's see if my assumptions were correct. Is Aatrox someone of incredible skill? If so, temporarily losing my place as a frontrunner on the leveling scene may pale compared to what we accomplish in future dungeon runs.'

…

Less than two hours later, Kieran arrived at the Forest of Beasts' entrance area. Although it was located in the same general area as the Fanged Forest, one only needed to travel half the distance before coming across an entrance.

After stepping across the threshold, it was as if they were transported deep into a remote area located within the Fanged Forest. The strange environment only allowed players entry and not beasts.

It had something to do with the modified spatial laws that begot several questions—all of which had no answer.

Despite the questions raised in the past, no game developers stepped forth and took credit for the extraordinary feature.

However, while players were transported inside, returning was another story. They'd have to fend for themselves after exiting this specialized space.

A few players learned this the hard way, which was why many players recuperated in this type of lobby area before departing.

Nevertheless, the excessive crowd of players caught Kieran's attention after arriving here. 'Although I'm hours late, I don't regret my actions. Sure it gave players time to catch up, but I doubt they'll do so again. Not with this….'

Kieran looked at the item in his hand.

It was a palm-sized bronze medallion with liquid the color of blue-green tourmaline flowing through it. The liquid formed a character that gave off a weary yet mystical feeling Kieran couldn't overlook.

「 Medallion of Growth (Special)

Item Rank: Rare

Item Level: N/A

Description: A special medallion made by an Enchanter of exceptional skill. Although it is a time-worn item, the implanted «Rune of Growth» maintains some activity.

Effects: The implanted «Rune of Growth» applies a 100% EXP Bonus while in possession. (Limited to monster-hunting EXP.)

Restriction: Not usable beyond Lv.20

Durability: ∞

Duration: 28 days 」

Although it was an item with a finite duration, Kieran was delighted that the granted EXP Bonus was so high. One hundred percent?!

Kieran would receive double the EXP gained from killing monsters compared to other players. The item was a little different from the one in Kieran's memories, but he chopped it up to his increased contribution.

Unlike what the walkthrough described, Kieran supplied extra coins and pelts.

Perhaps Grandma Agatha's deeper gratitude increased the item's effects. But because he couldn't confirm his speculations, Kieran pushed the matter to the back of his mind.

For now, he focused on assisting Altair in finding proper teammates to tackle the Forest of Beasts' highest difficulty.

Aside from Altair and Kieran, several other parties were looking for additional members.

"Three looking for two! Must be a healer and a tank. Attempting Forest of Beasts' Easy' to finish mapping the layout. Will be attempting 'Difficult' after."

"Four looking for one! Seeking a tank or veteran DPS. Running Forest of Beasts' Difficult'. It's our second clear. If you have no experience, we'll guide you. Just don't fuck up."

"Party of two looking for three! Apply with the intent to reveal your stats. Attempting the 'Difficult' setting for the third time. Must be Lv.5+ with a completed 'Easy' run. Noobs will be rejected."

Kieran stood beside Altair and looked around while rubbing his chin. Not many people sought parties to clear the Easy setting. After attempting the dungeon several times, they were now more interested in conquering the Difficult setting.

And because the system revealed both Kieran and Altair held zero clearance merit, most players stayed away from them. By now, they could have at least attempted the dungeon once.

If it were a few hours before, Kieran and Altair being Lv.6 would clearly indicate their skill, allowing them to be welcomed into several parties with open arms.

But, given Kieran's recent arrival, they confused this tardiness with him only recently achieving this level. Therefore, they were considered noobs whom a party probably carried with the exceptional party mechanism.

It was a sore misunderstanding, but it was their loss, not his.

"Altair," Kieran called out, drawing Altair's attention. After a brief pause, he inquired about Altair's information. "How much Attack Power, Control, and Agility do you have?"

If it was sufficient, he could aim for the team composition in mind.

"After placing my Attribute Points… I have 77 Attack Power, 42 AGI, and 40 CTL. But, my DEF is absolute shit. So, as you can probably tell, I'm a pure DPS," Altair answered.

A tinge of shock flashed across Kieran's expression as he glanced at Altair. "Did you get a max roll for Unassigned Attribute Points in your Unique Package?"

"Bingo," Altair admitted while motioning as if firing a gun.

Kieran scoffed and shook his head. 'This lucky little shitter. Even I was a few points off from a max roll. Considering that he should have also begun with abnormal CTL, albeit lower than mine, I guess we can opt for a more flexible party composition.'

Before proposing his idea, Kieran also took into account Altair's low DEF. As a Thief that wore leather armor, his DEF was sorely lacking compared to heavy armor or plate armor-based classes.

Although most players preferred a tank, Kieran felt there was enough damage between the two of them to clear.

Not to mention, his armor placed him higher than some Knights of the same level unless they followed a strict build.

"What do you think about me setting a flexible party composition," Kieran asked.

Altair pondered the question. "It's difficult to say. What type of composition are you suggesting?"

"Two extra healers and a magical dealer," Kieran professed.

The party composition sounded odd to Altair, but two healers meant Kieran intended to split the healing and lighten the load to compensate for the lack of a tank.

Noticing Altair's silence, Kieran added a bit more information. "The magical dealer must possess high Magic Power for our plan to work. But… it seems that not many Mages have appeared. At least, not ones with a high enough level."

Although character information was generally sealed and limited, that changed inside this unique dungeon environment. Player levels were on display for all to see. Kieran wouldn't accept a Mage below Lv.7 due to the risk of low Magic Power.

"Whatever. You can start calling out," Altair shrugged.

However, Kieran didn't start right at that moment. No, he waited to see if any parties would appear from the dungeon entrance.

Seeing as clearing the highest setting was frankly impossible without the proper skills, Kieran wasn't concerned that someone would take the First Clear.

After waiting patiently for another 30 minutes, several parties began appearing from the dungeon entrance. Once the space became crowded enough, Kieran started a new round of recruitment.

"Two looking for three. Looking for two Priests and a Mage. Little to no experience is required. However, it is preferred if you have cleared the 'Easy' setting beforehand," Kieran exclaimed.

Kieran soon began losing his patience as he received an ungodly amount of irritating party requests until he stumbled across a decent one.

Variety amongst classes was sparse, so rather than focus on roles, Kieran focused on class types to achieve his desired composition. A Hunter, Knight, or Fighter didn't fulfill his requirements, so it left those two classes.

After hearing his exclamation, several people applied to join his party, which continued unabatedly for a few minutes. But, the outcome drove Kieran mad.

"Can't people read or hear?! I've specifically stated that I wanted Priests and a Mage. Why is a ridiculous number of Hunters and Fighters applying?!"

Kieran soon began losing his patience as he rejected an ungodly amount of party requests until he stumbled across a few decent ones.