The SSS+ Rank Hunter Who Farms

4. Stepping Outside, What Do I See? Weeds. Rocks. Trees.

This game has a peculiar system—there’s no ‘status window.’

"Farming Window."

The first time I called it, I thought, ‘If you’re going to do this, why not just call it a status window?’ It was cringe-worthy—But now, I say it without hesitation.

[Farming Window]

- Name: Kim Su-hyeon

- Map: Secret Farming Map (SSS+)

- Time: Day 1

- Stats: Strength (S), Stamina (S), Agility (S), Magic Power(D)

- Abilities:

- Current Farm Points: 100

- Level: 1

- Current Farming Stat Points: 0

- Mana: 50

In the Farming World, the status window is called the Farming Window.

Some players still call it a status window, and honestly, I did too for the past ten years—

But I have to admit, ‘status window’ sounds more natural.

I let out a mix of admiration and frustration as I looked at the open window.

"Wow… shit."

On one hand, I lamented the fact that even my max-level status window—where I had reached level 999—was now completely wiped out.

On the other, I was amazed that I was starting with an SSS+ map and an SSS+ ability,

especially considering that most players in this Farming World begin with all F-rank stats.

My Strength, Stamina, and Agility were already at S-rank, and even my Magic—usually a pain to level—started at D instead of F or E.

Normally, this stingy game wouldn’t even hand out S-rank stats. At best, you’d get S-.

So the fact that I had S-rank physical stats and even D-rank magic meant one thing.

The SSS+ melee weapon ability was absolutely insane.

"Yeah, melee weapons were the right choice."

If I had chosen Summoning or Magic, my Magic Power would have probably been S-rank—

But in return, my physical stats would have likely been D-rank.

It was a bit of a shame, but early on, physical combat was always the best option.

Even my body felt lighter—if only slightly.

When I first woke up in this shitty hut, the most unbearable thing was the fact that I had lost all my stats.

I had felt horribly sluggish, like I was dragging around a body that wasn’t mine.

But now?

Even if I wasn’t back to SS+ levels, I was at S, and that alone made a huge difference.

"Hah…"

Seeing my Farm Points and Level made me sigh again.

Still, when I swung my wooden sword, the sound it made was strangely satisfying.

And then—

I noticed a skill I had never seen before, even after ten years of playing.

[Master of Melee Weapons]

Rank: SSS+

- Passive Skill (Melee Weapons)

- Increases melee weapon attack power by 1,000%.

- Reduces melee weapon durability loss by 2,000%.

- Allows the user to wield all melee weapons at a master level.

"Holy. Shit."

In this game, passive skills are incredibly rare.

Just having one is like having a permanent active skill buff.

And if you wanted to buy one with Farm Points, it would cost at least three times more than an active skill.

An SSS+ passive skill?

They don’t even sell those.

I had never seen an SSS+ passive skill in my entire time playing this game.

I couldn’t help but swear at the sheer absurdity of the skill’s effects.

"Ten times the attack power? What the hell?"

Technically, it was 1,100%, so that meant eleven times.

With this ridiculous attack boost, and my S-rank Strength, I could probably gather D-rank resources effortlessly.

And then there was durability loss reduction.

A godsend for someone who farmed constantly.

Sure, melee weapons weren’t like ranged weapons, where you burned through arrows—but crafting melee weapons took a lot of resources, and if you didn’t handle them properly,

they would break down ridiculously fast thanks to the game’s ‘realism’.

And the final option?

That was the most outrageous of all.

"Allows the user to wield all melee weapons at a master level."

I had never seen an option like this in the Farming World.

This game loved putting everything into clear numerical values.

No matter how much it pretended to be about realism and freedom, at the end of the day, everything was quantifiable.

Starting from plowing the field, how much the seeds cost.

How many days are needed.

What percentage of nutrients is currently present.

How much water is being supplied.

Even monsters—what percentage of their health remains.

How much is reduced when hitting a vital point.

What kind of status effects are applied.

Yet, an option like this, which inevitably involves ambiguous and subjective interpretation.

Isn’t it impossible to judge whether this is good or not?

Of course, it won’t be bad.

In this game, rank is law and god.

SSS+ rank is simply god.

The level of 'master' must be beyond what I imagine.

I had no particular worries.

As long as I am supported by the game system, at least within the Farming World, I will truly become a master of melee weapons, just as it says.

"There are no other skills... huh."

If there’s something to be disappointed about—though it might be a greedy complaint—it’s that they only gave me a single passive skill.

The reason for learning abilities and increasing their rank is largely to avoid fighting monsters like a dog and instead just click and hunt them easily.

Magic is a prime example.

Rather than a mud fight where you bare your teeth, bite, and get hit so hard your bones break, being able to just click 'Fireball' from a distance and roast wolf meat is clearly more efficient and even romantic.

That doesn’t mean melee weapons can’t have that romance.

As seen with sword control techniques, melee weapons also have many cool and click-worthy skills.

I expected that since this was SSS+ rank, they would at least give me one such skill.

"A shame, but... well..."

At least they gave me something.

I can just spend farm points later and learn those click skills.

I decided to be satisfied with an SSS+ rank passive skill that I wouldn’t be able to buy anywhere.

And when I opened the door and stepped outside—

"Wow."

Seeing the tall grass towering over me, the scattered rocks, and the massive trees so thick that it would take five people holding hands to surround one, I realized—

"Shit. So this is what SSS+ rank is."

I thought the Farming World had turned over a new leaf, giving me this map so I could enjoy the game in easy mode.

Because that would be the reasonable thing to do.

Honestly, they took away the map I spent ten years creating and gave me this one...

I thought that even if the difficulty was high, the rarity of resources would be high too, meaning they were at least giving me a chance to start anew here.

But that wasn’t it.

"You bastards. So this is what you meant by ‘decide carefully’?"

The single SSS+ rank ability wasn’t a privilege or a gift.

Without it, the difficulty would be so high that I wouldn’t even be able to start, so they just gave me a slight balance adjustment.

That much was clear—because the towering grass, trees, and rocks before me were all basic resources that couldn’t even be harvested or cut with F-rank stats and wooden tools.

The sight itself was familiar when starting in the Farming World.

Dense weeds, trees, and stones covering the area around the house.

Newbies complain about how messy it looks, but veterans love it because these are basic resources, and the more abundant they are, the less they have to venture far to gather materials early on.

These are the most fundamental F-rank resources, forming the base of all crafting.

And a little further out, when heading to farm E-rank resources, you'll encounter boulders instead of stones, thick trees instead of regular ones, and tough weeds instead of ordinary grass.

The ones around my house are a step above that—D-rank basic resources.

"If it weren’t for melee weapons, this would’ve been a reset."

If I had to sum up this game’s greatest strength and weakness in one word, it would be realism. Freedom.

Because of that damn realism and freedom, all kinds of annoying situations arise. But at the same time, thanks to that same realism and freedom, there are things you wouldn’t normally be able to do in this type of game that you can actually pull off—including resource gathering.

In resource-gathering games, the tool system is usually rigid. Most games require you to use a tool of the same rank as the resource, meaning you can’t even attempt to harvest materials without the proper equipment, or at best, it’s so inefficient that you might as well not even try.

But in this game, thanks to its notorious freedom and realism, I can actually gather weeds, chop trees, and break rocks using my basic wooden pickaxe, axe, and sword. The only condition for this is my stats.

If strength and stamina are high enough, you can use lower-rank tools.

There’s a penalty where durability wears down faster, but that’s still better than being unable to gather the abundant basic resources right outside my house, leaving me stuck in the game.

More importantly, thanks to the 'Master of Melee Weapons' effect, my weapon’s durability doesn’t wear down as quickly.

So choosing 'melee weapons' wasn’t a matter of preference—it was a necessity.

At least, in this SSS+ rank secret farming map.

Of course, if I had S-rank magic, there were probably other ways to develop and progress through a different route.

In a game with this much freedom, there’s always a way.

It would’ve just taken much longer and been an absolute pain in the ass.

"Yep, the straightforward way is always the best."

I swing my wooden sword, cutting down the weeds in front of my hut.

Since it doesn’t have a sharp edge, it shouldn’t really cut anything—

Swish!

With a crisp sound, the weeds fall smoothly.

"Not bad."

No matter how much of a D-rank resource it is, it’s no match for S-rank strength.

Even with just a wooden sword, I should be able to handle up to C-rank enemies without too much trouble.

"Hah..."

Even though I had clearly slashed away a large handful of weeds, the field around me remained densely packed.

The sun, which had been high in the sky, quickly began to dim.