Becoming an adventurer by copying monster abilities

50 to 80 gold coins.

Hunting giant rats, which aren't even monsters but just wild animals, would be an extremely lucrative reward.

The bulk of the reward will likely go towards investigating the cause of the giant rat riot.

Having accepted the commission, Luca did not intend to inform Tina and Irene to go along.

After several days of sparring with Luke, the former seems to have taken another step closer to mastering combat skills and is currently at a crucial stage.

Meanwhile, Elaine seems to be extremely busy with her work at the church lately, leaving her with no time to spare.

Moreover, if it's a team of three, even if the reward is fairly good, each person will only get about 20 gold coins.

Although Luke knew that, given Irene's personality, the other party would likely generously give him her share of the reward.

But he felt too embarrassed to keep accepting the other party's generous kindness.

After accepting the commission, Luke made some preparations.

The first thing to consider is the items you need to bring.

Giant rats that live in sewers typically carry a large number of germs and toxins.

Although Luke did not believe that these creatures, which were not even monsters, could harm him.

He now has a specialty called poison resistance, but he still keeps antidotes on hand just in case.

Then there are a few essential items for going out.

Kerosene bottles, quicklime, medicinal solutions, etc.

He also brought a large bag of dried meat, intending to test how efficient the ghoul's rapid digestion would be at restoring his strength after a battle.

Regarding equipment, both the hand-and-a-half sword and the armor on his body underwent comprehensive maintenance at the blacksmith's shop in the city.

The price is double that of my good friend's blacksmith shop in Twilight Town, but fortunately the craftsmanship is good and it's currently in perfect condition.

Having made all the necessary preparations, Luke set off alone for the location described in the commission.

...

In the south of the city, there is a somewhat dilapidated shantytown.

This place is some distance from the water transport docks of Ryan City, and it's a melting pot of all sorts of people, with all sorts of people converging here.

Sewage puddles emitting a foul stench and piles of garbage can be seen on the streets from time to time.

The dilapidated wooden houses on both sides of the road are on the verge of collapse.

This is the dark side behind the glamorous facade of Lane City, and also the slum of this bustling metropolis.

Of course, compared to refugees who can only set up tents outside the city and wander around, having a simple shack in the city to shelter from the wind and rain is already considered a relatively lucky thing.

As Luca walked into the alley, he stopped in front of a tavern with a dilapidated facade and a signboard painted with a fat rat.

At the entrance of the tavern, he met the contact person for this commission.

This was an extremely muscular man with a hideous scar across his face and solid muscles on his arms that bulged like boulders.

He was smoking a cheap cigarette and occasionally scratching his shiny scalp in frustration.

After receiving the report from Luke, the burly man looked him up and down.

Then, a fawning smile appeared on his previously somewhat fierce face.

"Adventurer, you've finally arrived!"

Although Luke's face looked somewhat young and his physique was much thinner than his.

However, the burly man showed no sign of disdain.

As a seasoned veteran who has been navigating this complex society for many years, he knows exactly where his commissions are posted.

Someone who could see and accept this commission from the association, and who dared to come alone.

He is definitely a professional with extraordinary powers.

In this world, judging people by their appearance often leads to a quick demise.

And the burly man, thanks to his ability to read people and his excessive caution, earned a relatively fitting nickname—

"Rat".

"You can call me Rat," the burly man said, ushering Luke into the tavern.

Perhaps seeing Luke frown slightly when he smelled the smoke, the rat immediately stubbed out the cigarette in his hand.

He swung his strong arm and quickly waved it between the two of them.

Then, the burly man asked the bartender to pour Luke a glass of ale, and began to pour out his grievances:

"You may not know this, but this whole area is our 'Grey Rat Gang's' territory. On the surface, we're a gang that collects protection money, but actually, we run a black market here, which is our main source of income."

Seemingly fearing that Luke might develop an aversion to the word "gang," the rat further explained:

"We call ourselves a gang, but we're really just a bunch of miserable people who've come together to make a living."

The guards rarely come here, and sometimes we have to intervene when minor conflicts occur. So, the Gray Rat Gang has contributed its share to this city.

Luke wasn't very interested in hearing about the other man's gang's rise to power and raised a question:

"Isn't this job about getting rid of the rats in the sewers? What does it have to do with your black market?"

The rat grinned smugly. "You'll see when you come with me. That's the proud masterpiece of our Gray Rat Gang!"

Led by the rat, the two walked through several intricate and foul-smelling alleyways.

Finally, they arrived at a huge well that had been abandoned for a long time.

Two burly men with wary expressions stood guard by the well.

Upon seeing the rat, the two burly men nodded respectfully and worked together to move the heavy metal plate over the wellhead.

"Sir, please follow me."

The rat, Ryuga, made an inviting gesture, and to prove it was safe below, he was the first to climb down the iron ladder on the well wall.

Luke looked down into the well, but found nothing unusual in his line of sight.

I twitched my nose twice, but I couldn't smell any faint scent of blood.

He then climbed down with the other person.

As the body continued to descend, the sunlight was gradually swallowed up by the well opening above.

A musty, damp smell began to fill the air around us.

To Luke's surprise, upon reaching the bottom, he found himself not in the filthy pipes filled with foul-smelling sewage and silt that he had imagined.

Although the environment was somewhat damp, it even looked rather clean and spacious.

The walls, made of huge bluestones, were covered with moss and water stains.

But in some corners, you can see makeshift beds covered with dry grass and extinguished campfires.

With the addition of various discarded old earthenware pots and bowls, the place seems to be filled with the lingering traces of human life.

The rat also provided timely commentary from the side:

"The sewers in this area were abandoned during the previous urban planning, so this place has been dry for decades."

After traveling along a giant main channel large enough to accommodate two carriages side by side for a while.

A noisy, bustling sound gradually came from ahead.

The scene that came into view made Luke feel a sense of novelty.

It turns out that the underground black market operated by the Gray Rat Gang was indeed located in the underground world.