"Newbie, why are you still spacing out?"

Lin Mo raised his head and saw a middle-aged man with rough skin and deep wrinkles on his face.

"Here, your weapon. Hold onto it tight. A warrior losing their weapon on the battlefield is like losing their head."

Lin Mo numbly accepted the sword handed to him—a one-meter-long blade covered in rust and stubborn dried bloodstains. He stared blankly at the blood marks on the sword, his thoughts in complete disarray.

Old Leight patted his shoulder and left him alone. He understood the confusion and fear these newcomers felt. After all, they weren't soldiers or battle-hardened adventurers. If the town's situation hadn't become so dire, the lord wouldn't have conscripted these rookies to hunt goblins in the Roland Forest.

He could only hope this would actually help... Recently, more and more young women had been abducted from town. If left unchecked, those damned goblins would grow stronger and likely overrun them completely, just like what happened to Lager Town not long ago.

Shaking his head, he turned and picked up a somewhat decent weapon from the pile of scrap metal provided by the authorities, then moved on to the next recruit.

"Sigh..."

Lin Mo gazed at the sword in his hand and let out a long sigh as memories flooded back.

He was a transmigrator.

In his previous life, Lin Mo had no extraordinary talents. After ten years of rigorous study, he got into an average university, joined an ordinary company, and lived a mundane life—meager salary, constant overtime, deteriorating health, and parents frequently calling to pressure him about arranged marriages...

Yet even that seemed far better than his current predicament.

Somehow transmigrating to another world, though his body had rejuvenated by several years, he'd immediately been roped into becoming a "volunteer" for the goblin extermination campaign.

There was no running away. This was technically a "voluntary" conscription, and now that he was here, any attempt to back out would be seen as undermining morale. The guards' gleaming blades would swiftly teach him a lesson.

On the way to the camp, he'd seen several who didn't believe this—some were whipped and dragged along. Those who resisted too fiercely were made examples of, their heads cleanly lopped off with a single precise strike.

Lin Mo looked down at the weapon he'd just received.

If there was any silver lining, it was the line of text that had suddenly appeared in his vision.

[Damaged Inferior Sword]

Weapon Type: One-handed Sword

Grade: Inferior (Gray)

Description: A rusted, battered sword so dull it probably can't even chop vegetables properly. Even in its prime, it was never particularly sharp.

A golden finger, or cheat system?

That's what novels from his previous life would call it.

Perhaps because of this system, he'd naturally mastered this world's language.

Using this advantage, during the short time since arriving, Lin Mo had gathered some information about this world through eavesdropping and simple inquiries.

First, this was a world with supernatural powers.

Those with talent could become "Professionals" through training and learning skills, gaining formidable strength. Unfortunately, most people lacked such opportunities or gifts.

Ordinary folks who couldn't become Professionals mostly survived through manual labor or working for wealthy nobles. Some chose to live dangerously, becoming adventurers who risked their lives fighting low-level monsters for bounties.

While the pay couldn't compare to real Professionals, it was better than backbreaking labor—the tradeoff being the constant risk of death.

And this was exactly what he was about to do.

Goblin extermination wasn't like war—there were no large armies mobilized for cleanup. In fact, small towns like Roland didn't have that many soldiers to begin with.

Even if they did, given the green-skinned runts' greedy, cruel yet cunning and cowardly nature, they'd immediately retreat deep into the forest at the sight of human forces, making pursuit difficult.

Once the army withdrew, they'd emerge again to continue pillaging supplies and civilians.

As a border town near the Roland Forest, Roland's inhabitants had long figured out the best way to deal with these creatures.

That was to form small teams of three to five, operating independently—small enough not to scare the goblins into fleeing, yet capable enough to handle small groups with decent success rates.

Experienced adventurers could choose suitable teammates to maximize combat effectiveness, but for conscripted unlucky souls like them, there weren't many options.

Lin Mo looked up at his assigned teammates.

Two scruffy-bearded middle-aged men were huddled together, grumbling about something.

A boy who looked about fifteen or sixteen clutched his sword tightly, head bowed in silence.

The last was a young man who'd received his weapon right after Lin Mo.

The youth was looking around and, noticing Lin Mo's gaze, flashed him a toothy grin.

"Hey, bro... your clothes look really cool."

His attire from his original world did stand out here, but thankfully he wasn't wearing anything too outrageous to be branded a suspicious heretic.

When Lin Mo didn't respond, the young man moved closer, examining him carefully before nodding. "Not bad. Mind lending them to me?"

Lin Mo studied the youth—short, sallow-faced and skinny, wearing a grimy old shirt with patches at the cuffs and hem.

"Do you know what we're about to do?" Lin Mo countered.

"Go die?"

The young man shrugged indifferently. "Whatever. Even if we stayed in town, we'd starve to death eventually!"

During peaceful times, farming or working for nobles could barely put food on the table. But with monsters running rampant, stealing provisions and destroying crops, plus trade routes becoming too dangerous due to goblin harassment—many merchant groups had suspended operations. With the wealthy unable to conduct business, these poor wretches couldn't earn their keep.

"Do you know when we're setting out?"

"How should I know? Ask Old Leight, though he probably won't tell you... So, about those clothes—lend them or not?"

"No."

"Tch~"

The youth pouted and plopped down nearby. "When a goblin smashes your skull in, I'll strip those clothes off your corpse."

Lin Mo ignored him. Since he couldn't get more information, he needed to focus on studying his cheat system to survive the coming battle.

Recalling the earlier sensation, Lin Mo concentrated and looked down at himself.

After a few seconds, transparent text appeared before his eyes.

As expected—it wasn't just objects. He could see his own attributes too.

[Name]: Lin Mo

[Class]: None

[Attributes]:

Strength: 4 (Maximum physical power)

Agility: 4 (Movement and reaction speed)

Constitution: 4 (Vitality, defense and endurance)

Spirit: 5 (Mental fortitude, perception and focus)

Magic: 0 (Power only mages possess)

Unsurprisingly, as a modern man who rarely exercised, his stats weren't impressive.

But...

[Skills]:

Slacking Off Lv4 (99/100): You've mastered the art of idling during work. When acting in groups, lowers your presence and reduces chances of getting caught "slacking."

Here it was!

Lin Mo's eyes lit up. All those years adhering to the principle "Not slacking at work means not really working," diligently researching ways to idle undetected, had finally paid off.

This skill might be his key to survival!

"New recruits, prepare to move out!"

Just as Lin Mo was examining his panel, a burly man in armor approached, rapping the ground with his lance.

"Those damned goblins have been getting bolder lately. This is your chance to make your mark and change your lives! The lord has declared you'll receive the same rewards as adventurers—100 copper coins per goblin killed!"

"Woohoo!"

The previously lifeless camp instantly erupted with excitement. Many eyes gleamed with anticipation, including the two middle-aged men and the youth who'd tried to borrow Lin Mo's clothes.

Normally, since goblins carried little of value, the bounty was merely a symbolic incentive from local lords—a meager 20 copper per kill.

But now it had quintupled to 100 copper—equivalent to over half a month's wages from hard labor. And these days, even menial jobs were scarce.

Killing just one goblin could buy a hundred loaves of black bread, ensuring at least a month without starvation!

Amid the jubilant crowd, Lin Mo quietly furrowed his brows.

While 100 copper sounded tempting, for ordinary people with no combat experience, was it really that easy to earn?