Ch.239239. SSS-Rank Hunters

Kellin had asked me for advice on what abilities would be good for her.

I just gave her advice from an efficiency standpoint.

“Holy magic is the most helpful for increasing damage here.”

Of course, this is only valid in biomes with chaos energy.

Since holy magic is a weakness against chaos energy, it can add extra damage, so enhancing an existing SS-rank ability might be better than adding a mediocre new one.

Even in places where chaos energy doesn’t apply, holy magic has its own sufficient uses.

Kellin accepted my advice and decided to add holy magic to her abilities.

Fire and ice.

It was a different approach from Kim Su-jung, who chose to use two abilities.

“I’m going to be a tank.”

Clay chose a completely different ability.

“To protect Kellin.”

“That’s a good choice.”

In a way, it’s a sacrifice.

For Kellin’s sake, Clay was giving up the opportunity to become stronger and starting fresh.

But Clay showed no dissatisfaction or hesitation in making that choice.

He selected the ability as if he had been waiting for this opportunity.

“It’s an ability called ‘Protection.'”

“Thank you.”

“No need for thanks. It’s a slave contract, so work hard.”

Having two abilities doesn’t simply double your power.

Depending on how you use them, you could become two or three times stronger.

But when you use completely different abilities, things get ambiguous.

Sometimes, trying to utilize them effectively might actually make you weaker than usual.

This is especially true when changing your main ability, like Clay is doing now.

That’s why since I decided to make melee weapons my main focus, I’ve tried to use my sub-abilities only as supplements and avoid using even good abilities if they don’t connect with my main one.

“A shield… Oh, you brought one already?”

Clay had already prepared a shield, suggesting he had already made up his mind to switch to being a tank.

A reliable tank and a powerful mage.

The combination was so clean that this expedition team would be complete with just a few more additions.

“Doesn’t Kellin already have a tank in her party?”

The potential issue was Kellin’s party members who might come.

While I was waiting for an answer, I thought they would likely follow Kellin, but wouldn’t that make things awkward for the hunter who was originally in the tank position?

But Kellin seemed to have already thought about this.

“The tank probably won’t come. Same with the healer. They’re all tied to the SAINT guild. I told them not to come unless they were as certain as I am.”

“That’s a shame.”

This was unexpected.

I thought Kellin’s party members would follow her regardless of what happened to her.

It’s not like Kellin was losing her abilities, just changing affiliations. I was sure she would take responsibility for her party members if they followed her, but perhaps there was something binding them to the SAINT guild?

I didn’t specifically ask about the circumstances. I was curious, but I didn’t want to get involved in matters related to Kellin’s party.

In truth, the farm didn’t need Kellin’s party; it needed Kellin, whom I could somewhat trust.

If Kellin came, her party members could join if she wanted, but I wasn’t particularly hoping they would come to strengthen the expedition team.

As long as Kellin and Clay could fulfill their roles, that would be enough.

They both had SSS-rank abilities, and unlike me, they wouldn’t have to hunt by breaking through unexplored biomes on the front lines.

The expedition team’s role was simply to develop the biomes around the farm that I had overlooked.

And so, Kellin and Clay’s ability distribution was completed.

What remained was Seo Hyo-ju’s ability, who had just arrived.

Since Hyo-ju needed more explanation, I briefly explained the benefits given to guards recruited to the farm, along with their roles, and told her to choose an ability.

After some consideration, Seo Hyo-ju made her decision.

“Can I upgrade my summoning to SSS-rank?”

“Of course.”

All three people made different choices.

Seo Hyo-ju seemed uninterested in other abilities and immediately chose to upgrade her summoning ability to SSS-rank.

Well, this wasn’t particularly special either; it was one of the most standard picks.

Rather than abandoning an ability you’ve used for at least a few years and choosing a different one, upgrading your existing ability might be the most efficient method.

Moreover, Seo Hyo-ju was a summoner with an S-rank summoning ability, not an SS-rank like Kellin.

In a way, she was at the lower end of the S to SS-rank ability range, so upgrading to SSS-rank would definitely make a noticeable difference.

Above all, abilities are a matter of personal preference.

If people could choose their abilities, everyone would pick high-ranked ones that suit their taste, but in reality, we use what we’re given. If the ability you received happens to match your preference, upgrading it might be the best choice rather than choosing a different one.

And Seo Hyo-ju didn’t seem to regret her choice.

“Thank you, oppa.”

Her cold expression was gone, replaced by one full of excitement as she checked her newly added abilities.

[The second monster attack begins.]

Before we could fully celebrate, the second wave started.

————-

With the addition of SSS-rank hunters, the farm gained some breathing room.

It might also be because Kim Sol-i was building walls day and night without rest.

Although the guards were working hard, everyone on the farm was still busy.

If there was anyone maintaining a relatively normal daily routine, it would be Lee Ji-hyun.

As the alchemy manager, she didn’t have much to do on Farming Day.

She still focused on alchemy and developed products for Farming Company to sell.

If she was busy at all, it was just helping with farming a bit during her personal time after work, but even that was rejected by Kim Su-jung.

“Unnie, just make energy drinks and put them in the fridge. Let’s not provide F-class help that lowers our efficiency. For the farm’s sake.”

“Okay, got it.”

While this might seem like dismissing Ji-hyun’s goodwill, it was actually an efficient and wise choice.

If you think of Farming Day as the final event of the Rift Dimension, then it would make sense to borrow even small hands to prevent monster invasions or produce more crops.

But that’s not the case.

It’s now the spring of the second year, and there’s still plenty of time left in the Rift Dimension.

Since Ji-hyun’s skills outside her specialty were practically non-existent, Su-jung’s intention was for everyone to focus on their roles rather than wasting time and energy.

Fortunately, Ji-hyun seemed to have more T-like qualities in this regard and cleanly gave up, going back inside.

“Okay, I’ll just make some tasty energy drinks.”

“Make them lemon-flavored, unnie. Those were delicious.”

“Sure.”

Everyone doing their best in their assigned roles.

It was admirable.

Among them, Kim Sol-i stood out the most.

Not only was she installing the outer walls, but she was doing it meticulously according to the design, paying attention even to the spacing between walls as if building a fortress. She was also expanding Seo Hyo-ju’s cabin, laying the groundwork to gradually turn it into a mansion.

The once open landscape around the cabin now gave a sense of security with the high walls in the distance, creating expectations about what it would be like to use all this vast land.

This was something I hadn’t attempted even in Su-hyun’s Farming World 1.

Back then, I just built walls around my house and had villages nearby, but I never connected the entire biome with outer walls.

This was only possible because the Rift Dimension provided many stronghold points and sufficient bratrium.

“Are you okay?” I asked Kim Sol-i.

With dark circles reaching down to her chin, she smiled and said:

“It’s so much fun.”

Kim Sol-i, who said she finally felt alive, was truly a talent suited for the farm.

I left the second wave of attacks to the new guards, got a good night’s sleep, and then set out to do my job.

Farming Day isn’t just about farming at home.

Of course, farming is the safest and most reliable way to get a harvest.

All you have to do is prevent monster attacks.

But those crops aren’t only obtainable through farming.

Crops that can be found in nature.

Rare resources are also affected by Farming Day.

My role was to gather those.