Jin-woo established a routine over the next two weeks. Every day he logged in at 7:00 AM. He walked to Rotwood Forest. He ground for ten hours with only short breaks to sell inventory and eat meals.
His pattern was simple. He would fight treants in the northern section of the forest for four hours. When his inventory filled with corrupted wood, he would move to the southern section and hunt Rotwood Bandits instead.
The bandits were level 16 enemies with 850 HP. They moved faster than treants but had less health. Jin-woo would pull three bandits at a time using the same strategy he used for treants.
He would attack the first bandit with his sword. The bandit would notice him and charge forward with a dagger. Two more bandits standing nearby would also activate and run toward him.
Jin-woo would back up and let all three bandits group together. When they were close, he would use Whirlwind Strike. The spinning attack would hit all three bandits for around 200 damage each.
The first bandit would attack with fast dagger strikes. Jin-woo would block the first attack with his sword. The bandit's dagger would clang against his blade. He would counter with two quick strikes. 43 damage. 45 damage.
The second bandit would try to circle behind him. Jin-woo would step to the side. He would position himself so all three bandits stayed in front of him. He never let them surround him.
The third bandit would throw a knife. The knife would fly through the air. Jin-woo would dodge left. The knife would miss and disappear.
Jin-woo would use Power Strike on the first bandit. The charged attack would deal 132 damage. The first bandit's health would drop below half.
All three bandits would attack at the same time. The first bandit would stab with its dagger. The second would slash from the side. The third would throw another knife.
Jin-woo would back up three steps. All three attacks would miss. He would move forward again immediately and strike the first bandit four times. 41 damage. 44 damage. 39 damage. 42 damage. The first bandit would die.
He would gain 88 experience. He would loot without stopping. 12 copper. Worn dagger.
Two bandits remained. Jin-woo would wait for Whirlwind Strike to come off cooldown. When it refreshed, he would use it. Both bandits would take 198 damage and 203 damage.
Jin-woo would focus on the second bandit. Normal attacks. Power Strike when ready. The second bandit would die after three minutes of fighting.
The third bandit would be alone. Jin-woo would finish it quickly with a combination of normal attacks and one final Power Strike.
Each group of three bandits took about eight minutes to kill. They dropped copper coins and vendor trash equipment. The equipment sold for 15-20 copper per piece at the village merchant.
Jin-woo would alternate between treants and bandits throughout each day. Treants dropped corrupted wood which sold for more money. Bandits dropped equipment which filled his inventory faster but sold for less gold per item.
By grinding ten hours per day, Jin-woo collected approximately 180-200 corrupted wood pieces and 40-50 pieces of bandit equipment. He would sell the corrupted wood to WoodworkMaster for 45-50 silver. He would sell the equipment to the village merchant for 30-35 silver.
His daily income averaged 80-100 silver, which converted to $80-100 USD.
On day three of his routine, Jin-woo reached level 16. He allocated 4 points to Strength and 1 point to Vitality. His Strength reached 57. His HP increased to 300.
On day six, he reached level 17. He put 4 more points into Strength and 1 into Vitality. His Strength reached 61. His HP increased to 310.
On day twelve, Jin-woo fought a group of three treants in the northern forest. He used Whirlwind Strike twice and killed all three. The third treant died and a notification appeared.
Level Up! You are now level 18.
Jin-woo allocated his stat points. 4 to Strength. 1 to Vitality.
Name: Jin Park
Level: 18
Strength: 65
Vitality: 32
Agility: 11
HP: 320/320
His damage had increased significantly since level 15. Power Strike now dealt 145-155 damage instead of 125-130. Normal attacks dealt 48-52 damage instead of 40-43. Whirlwind Strike dealt 210-220 damage per target instead of 195-205.
The increased damage made fights slightly faster. Three treants now died in six minutes instead of seven. Three bandits died in seven minutes instead of eight.
Jin-woo continued his routine. Grind. Sell. Repeat. Every day for two weeks.
After fourteen days, Jin-woo had earned $950 total from grinding. He converted the money from his ERO currency to his bank account in small amounts every two or three days.
His rent was due. Jin-woo paid $800 through his apartment building's online portal. The payment went through. His eviction notice was canceled.
He had $150 remaining. Jin-woo used it to make a payment on Credit Card 1, which had the highest interest rate. The balance on that card dropped from $4,892.31 to $4,742.31.
After the rent and debt payment, Jin-woo had $127 left in his bank account. He needed that money for food and electricity.
He bought rice, eggs, instant noodles, and cheap vegetables from the discount grocery store. The total cost was $43. He had $84 left.
Jin-woo sat in his apartment eating rice and eggs from his electric kettle. He looked at his bank account on his phone. $84.88.
"Barely surviving, but it's working," Jin-woo said.
The payday loan payment was due in five days. He needed $1,232 total. He had been making small payments toward it over the past three weeks, paying $50 here and $100 there when he could afford it. The remaining balance was $687.
Jin-woo did the math. If he earned $100 per day for the next five days, he would have $500. Added to his current $84, that would be $584. He would still be $103 short of paying the loan in full.
But $584 was close. He could probably negotiate a payment plan for the remaining amount. Or he could grind extra hours for the next five days and try to make up the difference.
Jin-woo finished his meal. He logged back into ERO and returned to Rotwood Forest. He ground for three more hours that night, killing treants and bandits until midnight.
He logged out with 47 silver earned for the evening. He converted it to $47 USD. His bank account increased to $131.88.