The Garbage Collector Who Stumbled Upon Mythical Weapons! - Chapter 3
Garm was surprised at how easily he had defeated his opponent.
—If it were the old me, I would have lost.
Once again, he realized how sharp his sword was and how much his equipment enhanced his physical abilities.
“This is really amazing… With this—”
Feeling good, Garm ventured deeper into the forest.
The forest was filled with a lukewarm breeze, and the thick miasma made the air heavy with poison that could corrode a person’s body. However, thanks to Atlas’s armor, which nullified status effects, Garm could move around without any problems.
A bat-like monster spread its wings and rushed at him, but he cut it down in an instant.
A charging boar-like creature was repelled by the power of his shield.
A rampaging tree monster had all its branches severed before being chopped down at the base.
“Alright, alright! I don’t feel like I can lose. This sword can cut through anything!”
Garm looked at his palm. Activating the Appraisal ability of the Frawgan’s Helmet, his status appeared before him.
Garm Orlando Lv16
Health: 20
Magic: 11
Strength: 23 (230)
Defense: 16
Agility: 18 (180)
“Oh! My level went up. No matter how hard I tried, I never got past 14… At this rate, maybe I can go even higher?”
Originally, Garm had come to “Visal’s Forest” to test his equipment’s abilities. But before he knew it, his goal had shifted to leveling up.
“Even though it’s a pitch-dark forest at night, I can see clearly.”
—So this is one of the abilities of Wise General Frawgan’s Helmet], night vision.
Thinking it was a convenient skill, he continued deeper into the forest, where he encountered a group of Bloody Bears.
These creatures were classified as extremely dangerous monsters. When they noticed a human, they started approaching slowly.
Garm raised the Overlord Dragon’s Demon Sword to test its abilities.
The sword was blessed with four powers.
—The four gemstones embedded in the hilt… They seem to allow me to use magic, but this is my first time actually trying it. Please, let this work.
Among the four gemstones—red, blue, yellow, and green—the red one glowed.
Flames erupted from the sword. When Garm swung it at the Bloody Bears, the ground exploded, fire spread, and the surrounding trees were scorched and toppled.
All that remained was the charred, torn-up ground of the forest.
There was no trace of the Bloody Bears. Every single one of them had been annihilated, completely blown away.
“Whoa… I can do something like this…?”
Garm stared at his sword in amazement at its overwhelming power.
“I can’t use magic… But with this, I don’t need to.”
The red gemstone lost its color, turning transparent, likely because its magic had been depleted. However, after a short while, the red color slowly began to return.
From this, Garm understood that even if he used up all the magic, the sword’s blessings would recharge over time, allowing him to use magic again.
“This is incredibly useful!”
Garm walked along in high spirits, looking at his sword. Above him, something moved.
A dark blue body slithered, hanging from a tree branch. Sharp fangs gleamed, and a long, thin tongue flicked out.
A deadly venomous serpent—the Death Viper. A dangerous monster that had claimed the lives of countless adventurers.
It targeted the back of Garm’s unguarded head and struck.
However, its fangs sliced through empty air. The armored man was no longer there. As the snake scanned its surroundings, its body suddenly fell to the ground with a thud.
The Death Viper’s body was still wrapped tightly around the tree trunk.
At that moment, the serpent realized what had happened—its head had been cut off.
“Too bad for you. Thanks to my helmet’s Search skill, I can detect enemies instantly. Sneak attacks won’t work on me.”
As Garm walked away, the fading vision of the snake caught a glimpse of his retreating figure.
“Come on, bring it on! I’ll take on as many as you want!”
He continued cutting down countless monsters. When he used the blessing of the blue gemstone, freezing cold air spread, encasing his enemies in ice.
When the green gemstone glowed, blades of wind swirled around, slicing through his foes.
The yellow gemstone contained the power of lightning, which crashed down over a wide area.
Dozens of monsters struck by the lightning died instantly, though a few with high resistance survived. Even they, however, were left convulsing and barely clinging to life.
Garm immediately went around, cutting off the heads of the remaining creatures.
Even after taking down so many monsters, Garm didn’t feel particularly exhausted.
“Is this also the power of my equipment…?”
He used Appraisal on himself again.
“Oh! My level is over 20!!”
Reaching level 20 was a milestone, marking one as a top-class adventurer. A mere ordinary person like Garm was never supposed to reach such heights.
His thoughts began to change.
Originally, he planned to sell the sword and armor for a high price. But now that he had experienced their incredible power and realized how quickly he could level up, things were different.
—If I keep them, I can become an adventurer and make a fortune.
“Becoming an adventurer again…”
Garm had always regretted giving up on that path. More than anyone, he knew he was just an average man.
This year, he would turn 34. Starting as an adventurer from scratch at his age was pure recklessness.
—But with this equipment…
He made up his mind but was also aware of a major problem.
As long as he wore this gear, he was invincible. However, if he used it openly, people would naturally start asking where he got it.
Of course, it rightfully belonged to him. Even if it was found in the trash, ownership was legally recognized by the kingdom and its laws.
Garm had no need to hide it.
But a weapon of such extraordinary quality surely had a history. It was likely cursed or had some kind of sinister origin. Garm knew he had to be careful.
Depending on the situation, the kingdom, the local government, or even a noble might confiscate it.
If that happened, a commoner like Garm wouldn’t be able to resist.
“I finally found this… There’s no way I’m giving it up!”
Even if he became an adventurer again, he decided to avoid using the equipment publicly. However, to do so, he would need to raise his level much higher.
—If I reach the mid-20s, I can operate as a first-rate adventurer on my own.
With that thought, he eagerly searched for more monsters. At that moment, Garm failed to notice something—the atmosphere around him had begun to change.
His string of victories had made him careless. He had grown overconfident, believing that as long as he had his equipment, he was invincible.
This was a mistake he would later come to regret.