What the City Taught Me Quest Guide: Alex's Gifts and the Earring Scroll (Kerning City)

What the City Taught Me is a five-step Kerning City Citizenship chain from Alex, open at level 27 with Kerning City Citizenship grade 4. Alex isn't ready to go home yet and wants to thank the people who helped him. Total: 16,500 EXP (about 26% of level 27), 3,792 mesos, Blue Potion ×15, Lemon ×15, 500 Kerning City Contribution, and an Intermediate earring stat scroll of your choice.

Quick answer: Alex, Kerning City, Lv. 27+, Kerning City Citizenship grade 4+. Farm one item: Alex's Gift Sack from Ligators (Lv. 31) in the marshland. Then two gift runs, to Nella and JM From tha Streetz. Final reward: pick one Earring STR/DEX/INT/LUK Scroll: Intermediate.

Before you start

Finish Mother's Gold Watch first (Chief Stan, Lv. 18).
Finish First Greeting with Alex, the Town Resident first (Community Board, Lv. 12).
Every step needs Kerning City Citizenship Grade 4+. See the citizenship guide for how grades work.

Step-by-step

#	Quest	Start NPC	Bring / defeat	Reward
1	A Lost Thank-You	Alex	Alex's Gift Sack	3,750 EXP, 862 mesos, +80 Kerning City Contribution, Blue Potion ×15
2	Too Shy to Say It Himself	Alex	Nothing to collect: you're handed A Gift for Nella when the step starts, just deliver it	2,625 EXP, 603 mesos, +80 Kerning City Contribution
3	Nella's Old Memory	Nella	Nothing to collect (talk/deliver step)	3,750 EXP, 862 mesos, +80 Kerning City Contribution, Lemon ×15
4	One More Debt to Repay	Alex	Nothing to collect: you're handed A Gift for JM when the step starts, just deliver it	2,625 EXP, 603 mesos, +80 Kerning City Contribution
5	Not Ready to Go Home Yet	JM From tha Streetz	Nothing to collect (talk/deliver step)	3,750 EXP, 862 mesos, +180 Kerning City Contribution, your pick of one: Earring STR Scroll: Intermediate, Earring DEX Scroll: Intermediate, Earring INT Scroll: Intermediate, Earring LUK Scroll: Intermediate

Walkthrough notes

Step 1: Alex lost a sack of thank-you gifts in the marshland. Defeat Ligators near Kerning City until Alex's Gift Sack drops.
Step 2: he's too embarrassed to hand the gift to Nella himself, so you deliver it.
Step 3: tell Alex that Nella liked it.
Step 4: same again for JM From tha Streetz.
Step 5: JM acts like he doesn't care but secretly likes it. Report back to Alex.
This picks up where Alex the Runaway Kid left off; Mother's Gold Watch is a requirement.

Where to find the monsters

Spawn counts per map from the game data, densest first:

Ligator (Lv. 31, 853 HP, weak to Fire): The Swamp of Despair I (41), The Swamp of Despair II (36), The Swamp of Despair III (28), The Murky Swamp I (17). Skip Dangerous Croko I (14): it also spawns Crocos (Lv. 52).

The Swamp of Despair I is the first map out of Kerning City, so it's the natural pick. You only need one Gift Sack, but drop rates aren't in the game data, so how many Ligators that takes is luck.

Total rewards

Reward	Across the whole chain
EXP	16,500
Mesos	3,792
Guaranteed items	Blue Potion ×15, Lemon ×15
Step 5 item	your pick of one: Earring STR Scroll: Intermediate, Earring DEX Scroll: Intermediate, Earring INT Scroll: Intermediate, Earring LUK Scroll: Intermediate
Kerning City Contribution	500

Is it worth it?

Yes, for Kerning City citizens. It out-pays the other level 27 citizenship chain, Henesys's After the Festival Ends... (15,375 EXP, 3,533 mesos): 16,500 EXP (3,750 on three steps, 2,625 on the other two), 3,792 mesos, 500 Kerning City Contribution, 15 Blue Potions, 15 Lemons, and a class-matched earring scroll you pick yourself. The one hard part is step 1: Ligators are level 31, four levels above the chain's start, so bring potions or come back a bit later.

Frequently asked questions

How do I unlock What the City Taught Me?

Level 27, Kerning City Citizenship grade 4 or higher, Mother's Gold Watch, and First Greeting with Alex, the Town Resident.

Where do I find Alex's Gift Sack?

Defeat Ligators in the marshland near Kerning City (The Swamp of Despair I has the most, 41). Ligators are level 31.

Which earring scroll does Not Ready to Go Home Yet give?

You pick one: Earring STR, DEX, INT or LUK Scroll: Intermediate.

How much Kerning City Contribution does it give?

500 in total: 80 on each of the first four steps and 180 on the last.

Sources: Game data v1.0.0. Names and game content © Nexon, used for informational purposes. The explanations on this page are our own.