Synchronization

"Huff... Huff..." Albert panted heavily as he rested near a tree.

'System, how's my progress?' He asked as sweat ran down his face

[2%]

'2 percent... That's not that bad...' He thought. 'Albeit slow...'

He was currently in stormbearer mountains, far away from Mondstadt.

The walk he had lasted for approximately two hours. During his journey, fortunately, he did not encounter any danger.

This is because he took the safe route leading to the mountain.

He first went through the Whispering Woods, which is a deep forest that has unique trees producing whisper-like sounds due to the wind passing through.

He walked through the road that was already there and did not encounter any danger.

During the trip, he would occasionally take a break due to his low stamina.

After getting past the Whispering Woods, he arrived at Starfall Lake, where a statue of the seven was present. And again, he took a rest there before continuing.

And finally, after two hours of walking from Mondstadt to the Stormbearer Mountains, he finally started his training.

Wiping off his sweat, he looked at his hands which were covered in bruises. 'Swinging a sword continuously for a hundred times... It's not an easy task.'

Right now, he feels like his limbs are about to give up due to the swinging he just did. 'Well, there's no use in complaining.'

'The system did say that this will improve the mobility of my arms or something...' He thought.

Picking a leather pouch, he noticed something about his progress.

"System, is there any way to quicken my progress?" He asked as he drank some water from the pouch he brought with him.

[The host can buy a booster in the shop]

"Wait, really? Then—"

[However, the shop feature is still locked and you lack 400 Fame Points to buy one.]

"...Oh." Albert said before sighing.

Shaking his head, he changed the subject. "Never mind then, give me another task for my training."

[Understood.]

[A new quest has been issued.]

[Name: Stealth]

[Description: If one wants to be an Assassin, one must first master the art of stealth.]

[Objective: Stealthily invade a Hilichurl camp and open the treasure chests they keep.]

[Rewards: Stealth(Skill), +10 Progress]

'Oh, a sneaking mission.' Albert thought as he read the content of the system window.

'Invading a Hilichurl camp... One wrong mistake and I'm dead.' He concluded.

To a player playing the game, a normal Hilichurl means nothing. However, now that Albert is in the world of the game, the Hilichurls is no laughing matter.

Many people that don't possess a vision either got killed or went missing when they encounter a Hilichurl camp. And this happens frequently to unfortunate adventurers or merchants.

Especially if the camp has an elite monster among them. Which are the Mitachurls, a much bulkier version of a Hilichurl. And a Samachurl, a monster that can cast elemental attacks.

"..." Albert fell into deep thinking.

'I am no doubt weak.' He nodded. 'However, if I play my cards right... No, even if I did, there's a high possibility that I'll get discovered.'

Sitting below a sunsettia tree, he started pondering different strategies to use. 'Should I first make a distraction? Lead them out of the camp first?'

'Yes... I should do that.' He nodded at this thought.

'Now, how should I deal with their senses?' This was one particular problem he had encountered. 'Hilichurls are known for their wild and territorial nature, and as such, they have high senses.'

'But more importantly, they have a keen sense of smell.'

Looking around his surroundings, he thought of ways to counter this problem.

While he was looking around blankly, he saw something on top of him. 'Sunsettias...'

As if realizing something, his eyes widened as a small smile appeared on his face. 'That's it! Sunsettia!'

'I can cover my smell with this fruit!' He thought. 'Since Hilichurls are always in nature, they should not be able to suspect anything if I cover myself with Sunsettia— a fruit they normally encounter in the wild.'

Thinking of this, Albert gently nodded. 'System, lead me to the Hilichurl camp.'

[Understood.]

[Please head east from your current location and you shall find a Hilichurl camp]

Seeing the system's text, Albert nodded and started preparing the necessary materials he needs for the mission.

* * *

On a Hilichurl camp.

The sun's afternoon rays are shining down on a group of Hilichurls.

Four Hilichurls are currently dancing in a circular formation in front of a campfire as if doing a ritual.

On an archer tower, a Hilichurl wielding a crossbow was surveying the land.

And finally, sitting next to the dancing Hilichurls is a Mitachurl, and beside it is an axe.

This scene was quite peaceful, none can dispute that. If not for the fact that these creatures are savages that kill anyone that trespasses their territory.

Boom—!*

Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard.

The Hilichurls who were minding their own business got alerted almost instantaneously.

The giant Mitachurl stood up and carried its axe. It was planning to investigate the explosion.

"Do Nye Upa." It said in their language which roughly means "Do not come".

Seeing the Mitachurl leave, the Hilichurl wielding a crossbow looked around to see any enemies.

As it looked around, it noticed something strange.

It was a thick bush.

It definitely was not there earlier.

The Crossbow Hilichurl looked closely and saw that nothing was wrong with it. Combined with the smell of Sunsettia, it guessed that it must be a Sunsettia bush.

Not soon after, the crossbow Hilichurl looked away.

However, without it noticing anything, the bush started moving towards the location where their treasure chest was located.

The Bush stopped right near the house containing the treasure chest, and soon, Albert's figure came out.

'Looks like it worked.'

Thinking of this, he wasted no time and started climbing the window at the back of the house.

Carefully entering he finally saw it.

A common chest.

Albert spent no time thinking of useless things and started opening the chest.

Tak—*

A low creaking sound was heard.

Albert looked around in panic. But thankfully, no angry Hilichurl barged in.

'Thank Goodness...' Albert internally sighed.

[Quest completed.]

Seeing the notification, a sense of relief once again went by Albert.

However, his relief soon disappeared as he saw a shadow entering the house.

Out of impulse, he quickly ran to the side of the doorless entrance to hide.

"Mosi~" A single Hilichurl said as it tapped its belly. Clearly, it was hungry.

However, it then noticed Albert and looked at him.

'Ah.' Albert thought before moving fast.

The Hilichurl was quickly tackled by Albert and was held up against a wall.

To prevent it from screaming, Albert went under its mask to cover its mouth.

"Mmm! Mmm!" The Hilichurl's muffled cries resounded between the two of them.

'What should I do?!' He panicked.

It was then that the system's window appeared beside him.

[Do not hesitate, host.]

[A hidden quest has been triggered.]

[What must an Assassin do when they are discovered?]

Seeing the sudden quest and the system's words, Albert instantly realized what it meant.

Looking at the sword he brought with him, he knew what to do.

Picking up his sword from his scabbard while holding the Hilichurl with one hand and his body, Albert breathed in and out first.

Holding the sword beside the Hilichurl he closed his eyes before doing the deed.

Slash—*

With a swift slash, the Hilichurl's neck was cleanly sliced.

"Huff... Huff..." Albert panted as he looked at the bleeding Hilichurl.

His eyes suddenly widened as he realized what will happen next. 'I need to escape!'

'The other Hilichurls would no doubt smell the blood!'

Without wasting any more time, he fled the place. 'I should be able to escape further since they should be occupied by the corpse first.'

With this thought, Albert ran without looking back. Even when the sun's sunlight scorching him, he did not stop.

Finally, after a few minutes of running, he stopped and slammed against a tree to rest.

"Huff... Huff..." He heavily panted, extremely exhausted. Sweat beads ran down his forehead and neck, quickly drenching his clothes.

[Congratulations to the host for completing two quests today]

[Two synchronizations can be done, would you proceed?]

'Two... Synchronizations...?' He thought, still panting.

Gritting his teeth, he commanded the system. "Do it."

[Understood.]

[Stealth synchronization underway...]

[Due to the sudden hidden quest, another synchronization shall be added.]

[Assassination synchronization underway...]

[Once finished synchronizing, the host's progress shall be raised by 30]

[In addition, a slight increase in stats shall happen.]

[Note: During the synchronization, the host shall enter a state of slumber.]

Reading the last line, Albert's eyes widened. 'Wait... Sleep?! No, no! I... I can't...'

'I can't... Fall asleep... Here...' Those were his last thoughts before falling into slumber.

"...Huh?"

However, fortunately for him, a passing captain of the Reconnaissance company happened to pass by him on her patrol.

* * *

A/N: To the people who are asking: No, the traveler has still not woken up.