Wayne returned to the net cafe, put on his glasses, and immediately dived back into the game.
Raymond was over there teaming up with Lyria's trio. Since they made a perfect group of four, Raymond—relying on his extra half-day of experience—kept offering them guidance. He specifically coached Jyssetta the Priest and Zaldimar the Mage on how to use light and heavy bowguns.
Wayne had previously told him that magic users could use bowguns to simulate their typical combat style. To Raymond, anything the Teacher said was absolute truth.
Wayne, meanwhile, was soloing a Black Diablos—a subspecies of the Diablos. As the name suggested, its body was entirely black. Compared to a standard Diablos, the Black Diablos was far superior in stamina, attack power, and agility. For a solo player like Wayne, a "no-damage" strategy that focused on evasion was the most efficient and safest way to win.
The other four would often take off their glasses during mission transitions or while waiting for teammates to catch a glimpse of Wayne's screen. The biggest advantage of having him play nearby was that players no longer complained—as Dughan once had—that the monsters were impossible to kill. Whenever they felt stuck, one look at Wayne's screen told them the truth: it wasn't that the monster was too strong, it was that they were too "noob."
Two hours passed in a flash, and all five people in the room were making solid progress. Wayne had already gathered most of the materials from breaking horns and severing tails and was preparing for the next mission.
Meanwhile, under Raymond's somewhat questionable guidance, the other four had actually developed a decent rhythm. With three ranged bowguns supporting Lyria's sword-and-shield melee style, they were already repeatedly farming the Rathian.
The four didn't just practice on their own; they frequently watched Wayne's solo runs to learn and analyze his techniques.
"You have to hit the head more," Raymond noted. "Not only can you break the horns, but it seems you can also knock the dragon unconscious."
"It seems that besides the head, hitting the legs can make the monster lose balance and fall," Jyssetta added.
"Do you ranged users feel like the damage varies depending on where you hit?" Lyria asked. "When I slash the Rathalos with my sword, the damage on its wings seems exceptionally low."
"I'm not sure," Zaldimar replied. "We've just been following Raymond's advice and staring at the monster's head to shoot."
Mid-hunt, Wayne overheard them and offered a tip: "Every monster basically has different weak points. The weaknesses of the Diablos and Black Diablos are the wings and abdomen, and they are weak to Ice. The Rathalos and Rathian only have the head as a weak point, and they are weak to Dragon element."
"The Teacher is indeed the teacher," Raymond praised. "To remember so much knowledge about so many monsters."
Wayne was speechless. "There's a Hunter's Notes in the game. You can check the weaknesses and resistances of any monster you've fought... Have you guys just been hacking and slashing this whole time without looking at it?"
"What?! Where is it?" After a moment of shock, the four hurriedly put their glasses back on and went back into the game to search. Sure enough, they found the encyclopedia and immediately began studying it.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside. The chirping voices of the town's children rang out as they ran toward the large clearing in the woods south of the blacksmith shop.
"What's going on?" Wayne asked.
Lyria told him that the Darkmoon Faire was arriving. Their theme was world peace, with members of various races working together across boundaries. There, one could see Tauren and Night Elves cooperating to guard the camp, Dwarves and Trolls handing out prizes together, and Humans and Orcs entertaining guests—a rare sight in the world of Warcraft.
They traveled between the two continents, holding events south of Goldshire and southwest of the Tauren capital, Thunder Bluff. The festivities began on the first Sunday of every month and lasted for one week.
Dozens of members would bring their equipment and supplies, forming a grand convoy that crossed the sea by ship. They usually arrived at the venue three days early. The noise outside was the small sensation caused by their arrival in Goldshire. Once the week of entertainment ended, they would pack up and rush to the next location.
During the week of the Faire, Goldshire would become exceptionally lively. This didn't just mean another entertainment venue for the locals; adventurers from far-off lands would travel specifically to join the activities. There, one could play games to earn tickets for interesting items or collect rare cards to exchange for the legendary "Darkmoon Cards," which were said to carry special magical effects.
Ordinarily, Wayne would have gone out to join the fun. But with the one-month deadline to attack Hogger looming, nothing was more important than increasing his strength to save his own life. Besides, even if he missed this Faire, he would only have to wait another two months for its return. Thus, he kept his glasses on and returned to the game.
However, today didn't seem like a day for quiet gaming. Just as Wayne started a new mission on the map for the ancient phantom beast, Kirin, there was a knock at the door.
"Come in," Wayne said without turning around. He was currently using his materials to craft Large Barrel Bombs. He planned to knock the Kirin unconscious and then place the bombs near its head to maximize damage.
Once the Kirin mission was cleared, Wayne would be very close to the Fatalis. The rest would be a matter of farming materials for gear. He was focused on figuring out the most cost-effective way to solo the Fatalis as quickly as possible when the knocking continued.
Growing impatient, Wayne raised his voice. "Come in! The door isn't locked!"
With a creak, the heavy door was pushed open a crack, but it seemed the person outside struggled to move the door reinforced with iron plating by Andrew. Raymond, sensing Wayne was being disturbed, immediately got up to open the door. But when the door opened, he froze.
"Teacher... Teacher... look at this."
Wayne was currently battling the Kirin. This boss, which moved incredibly fast and frequently unleashed large-scale lightning attacks, was considered a top-tier gatekeeper in Monster Hunter G. Clearing it meant one had the skill and strength to face the final three Elder Dragons of the storyline.
Wayne had no choice but to run his character to a safe distance, quickly lowered his glasses, and glanced at the doorway. He saw a figure, only about 1.2 meters tall.
Thinking of his past life, Wayne instinctively blurted out to Raymond: "This net cafe doesn't accept minors. No entry without an ID."
"ID???"
Wayne's reflexive words, spoken in his haste, left not only Raymond bewildered but also the person standing at the door completely confused.