Only My Magic Levels Up - Chapter 99
Only Noblemtl
Episode 99 Who will catch more? (3)
The pre-assembly ended with everyone slightly excited.
Back at the campsite, the prize was still the topic of conversation.
Akanksha and Sachet were even more interested than when they discovered the treasure in the ruins.
“Of course, the treasure discovered in the ruins is worth a lot of money… … but it’s not like it’s all going into my pocket, and I can just earn the money when I need it anyway, right?”
It was Akanksha who spoke so easily, but it was indeed easy. A golden powerhouse could earn hundreds of gold coins just by choosing one suitable request and running it.
“On the other hand, star crumbs are something that you can’t get even with money. So of course you can’t help but be interested in them.”
“I was a little embarrassed when I heard it.”
Lilia was full of curiosity, but also a bit bewildered. The expression half-hearted could be applied accurately.
“The Holy Sword is an item that has been passed down as a legend in the church, so why are you suddenly saying that it was made of that material? Is that true?”
“Well, it’s actually a story that’s been passed down among us as a half-legend. It’s true that we live several times longer than humans, but we don’t live for thousands of years. We can’t be sure that it’s true.”
“What about the traditions of humans?”
As if they had been in the same group from the beginning, Radika opened the tent and came in, asking very naturally. Lilia answered after a moment of recalling her memories.
“Long ago, before the church was even called a church, there was a warrior who fought against the devil at the forefront, holding a holy sword… … Is that all?”
“I guess the story of the fairy giving it as a gift hasn’t been told. However, it is said to have remained in our folklore. It is said that back then, humans and fairies were much closer than they are now. They even made swords out of star fragments and gave them as gifts several times.”
“How many times?”
“Items made from star fragments must go through a ‘taming’ process, and once tamed, they can only be used by their owner. Furthermore, if the owner dies, they lose their power and become ordinary objects.”
“Then the reason why the Holy Sword is a legendary item is… … .”
“That’s because the things used in ancient times have not been passed down, and we have never given them as gifts in modern times.”
“That’s a very realistic reason.”
“Of course, there are also things like it being distant from humans, and things that are simply not enough for us to use.”
Akanksha added a word. Galen asked.
“How rare is it?”
“Well, to what extent… … .”
Instead, Radika answered, thought for a moment, then slightly parted the collar around her neck.
Soon, a thick chain necklace hidden inside the clothes was revealed.
“This is a necklace made entirely of star fragments.”
At first glance, it looked completely unremarkable. The color was just a plain silver-gray, so I couldn’t tell if it was made of silver or iron.
Strictly speaking, the necklaces in this world are usually made of gold, as they are usually worn by noblewomen, so it may be unique in that they are not made of gold.
“Even if you want to make weapons or armor, you only need this much star fragments and mix the rest with other metals.”
“Is it a holy sword?”
“The Holy Sword… … Honestly, I don’t know. If you put in more than this, there’s a risk of it going out of control, but the world was so dangerous back then that they might have risked it and put in more. Anyway, we’re currently using this as our standard.”
“The prize for winning the hunting competition is exactly that much. Right, Sister?”
Akanksha naturally accepted Radhika’s words. When the older sister nodded, the younger sister continued speaking.
“It usually takes decades to collect just a handful.”
“What?! Dozens of years?”
“It’s not called crumbs for nothing. They are usually found only in very small quantities, and very rarely, in deep mines.”
When Lilia was startled, the earth elves looked understanding.
Even for fairies, who live several times longer than humans and have a somewhat different concept of time, decades are by no means a short period of time.
“You saw the reactions earlier, right? Among the earth fairies in the tent, there must have been only a few who had items made from star fragments. Even if you expand the scope to all the earth fairies who didn’t attend the competition, there are so few that you can count them on one hand. There are even more who die without ever touching one.”
“A while ago, by a stroke of luck, I was able to find a quantity close to the standard quantity at once. Thanks to that, I was able to put it up for sale.”
“But… … Is it okay for us to take something like that? It seems like such a precious treasure… … .”
“Hey, you’re talking like you’ve already won? We haven’t even started yet?”
“I asked in case something happens.”
“Everyone agreed, didn’t they? No one complained when we said we’d be treated the same as the other contestants. We can’t change our minds just because the prizes have been revealed.”
Radhika said with a soft smile. Her expression was definitely gentle, but somehow a chill could be felt.
“Don’t worry, I won’t forgive you if you refuse to take your fair share.”
“Oh, yes. Thank you.”
Actually, it seems like it would be quite an interesting experience if another earth elf tried to steal or rob them.
Anyway, since the number 2 in the hierarchy acknowledged it, I should eat it gratefully.
Of course, as Akanksha said, it was still a huge mess since the competition hadn’t even started yet.
“Ugh… … .”
When the earth elves left and the two were left alone, Lilia groaned.
“Why is that?”
“I suddenly want to win so badly… … I sound so materialistic, don’t I?”
“It’s okay, I’m the same way.”
Galen replied with a smile.
I’ve heard a lot about how rare star fragments are, but I’ve never heard about the options that come with items made from them.
If I don’t win, I’ll never get anything anyway, so I’ll let you know when I win.
So I became more curious.
Judging from how greedy the earth elves are, it seems like they can make powerful items, but what does it mean to have powerful items in real life, let alone a game?
As expected of a priest, Lilia was excited to imagine something like a legendary weapon that could defeat demons.
Galen was also curious. If an earth elf could use it, it meant that not only a priest but also a wizard could use it.
“I thought I could just catch as many evil spirits as I want and that would be the end of it… … I guess I’ll have to make a serious plan.”
“I’ll go ask if there’s a map or something!”
The two people who had come to play casually started to move seriously.
* * *
The overall atmosphere of the campsite was lively, like the eve of a festival, but not too noisy.
To be exact, the Baek-eun, that is, the regular earth elves, were having fun, but the golden earth elves, who were the leaders, were hardly visible.
“It wasn’t originally going to be this much, but it seems like all the participants are greedy for the prizes.”
The same goes for Akanksha, who said so. Not only Sachet, who was not very close to him to begin with, but Akanksha himself seemed to be busy devising various strategies and did not come to visit him often.
“Until the competition is over, we’re still enemies, right? Don’t be too disappointed.”
“It’s enough now. You’re already answering my questions.”
Thanks to this, Galen and Lilia were able to rest without any disturbance and make plans.
The fatigue from climbing mountains for days was long ago resolved with a single miracle of vitality, but in any case, when your body is comfortable, ideas come out better.
Three days passed by so quickly.
The fourth day, the first day of late summer.
The sun has not yet risen, but the sky is bright.
All the participants who had gone to bed early the day before gathered in front of the event headquarters tent, each carrying their luggage.
“Eighteen groups, thirty-six people. All confirmed to have participated!”
“Okay. Let’s each move!”
The leaders of the general assembly each stood at the front and led the participants.
Since there are so many participating teams, it is difficult to set off directly from the campsite.
The entire basin is roughly divided into eighteen sections, with the entrance of each section being the starting point.
The participants, split into eighteen groups, scattered to various places.
After walking for a few minutes following the guide, we saw a flag in the distance. It was flag number 7, our number.
There were a few staff waiting under the flag. When Galen and Lilia set off, they would follow slowly from a distance.
But when I got closer, surprisingly, there was Radika among the staff.
“Huh? Radika?”
“Could it be that a person, or rather a fairy, is chasing us?”
“No, no. If the vice president were to chase after a certain group, that alone would be cause for gossip.”
Radika waved her hand.
“I just volunteered to be the signalman at the starting point. I just wanted to say hello.”
“aha.”
“How are you, are you well prepared? You’ll be at the greatest disadvantage when hunting.”
“There’s nothing we can do. This is our first time.”
Galen shrugged.
I asked the event headquarters just in case, but they said they don’t provide maps of the entire hunting grounds.
All I have to do is give them a compass and give them a rough idea of the direction they should go.
The other circumstances were the same, but this was not their first time participating in the competition. Some had participated dozens of times.
Even if the nest-building evil species is random, since they know the terrain pretty well, they will have a rough idea of where they will build their nests based on experience.
“Still, I have to try hard.”
“Cheer up. I’ll be cheering you on.”
“Thank you, Radika!”
The conversation between the three ended there.
The other employees gave us one last round of cautionary remarks.
After a while, the sun peeked out from the eastern ridge.
“Let’s go.”
Leaving behind Radhika’s gentle encouragement, the two set off.
The first destination I set my sights on was the rock mountain in front of me.
It wasn’t that high, but the slope was steep compared to its height, so it was quite rough. It was a bit difficult for Galen to climb.
Of course, you don’t have to climb all the way to the top, you can just go around and that’s it.
Still, there was a reason for going.
“The flag is still visible.”
Lilia glanced behind her, then looked forward again and muttered.
Not far from the starting point, evil spirits were already appearing.
Four long-legged, tusked wild boars running out of the small forest ahead.
“It’s been a while, Penghog.”
“The score is a mere 100 points. Should I leave two of them?”
“Yes, please!”
Lilia pulled out the actual sword and held it in both hands. She still kept the swords that Akanksha had given her.
Penghog is a level of evil that is difficult for Bronze to handle on his own.
Even if four hundred came, not four, it would not be a threat to the two people.
Boom boom!
Two cleanly fired grenades in quick succession, shattering the heads of the two evil spirits one after the other.
With nothing else to see, Galen opened his bag and rummaged through it.
Pfft pfft!
In the meantime, the two Penghogs that had been rushing forward, surrendering to inertia, each had their swords stabbed into the nape of their necks.
Of course, it was instant death. I roughly stabbed him as if I was hammering a nail into him, but the stabbing was so clean that barely any blood came out.
“Here it is.”
What Galen took out of his bag was a sack. A sack for carrying things.
With the sword still in place, Lilia placed Panghog’s body into the hilt.
She took off her bag and carried a sack on each shoulder. It was as heavy as four or five strong men, but Lilia didn’t budge.
“Then I’ll go and come back!”
“yes.”
Lilia ran quickly towards the rocky mountain.
Galen followed behind her leisurely, carrying Lilia’s bag.
Boom! Boom!
After that, I encountered a few minor evils and sorted them out roughly.
After passing through a small forest, a person appears on a rocky mountain in the distance.
Lillia, who had run all the way there before she knew it, quickly reached the top, jumping up the steep rocky mountain like a mountain goat.
After displaying the two corpses of Penghog, cut into pieces and placed on a flat surface at the top of the rocky mountain, he retrieved the sword and its hilt and returned to Galen.
The movement was so swift that Galen had not even reached the bottom of the rock mountain.
“Thank you for your hard work. You didn’t have to rush so much.”
“I’ll save time by doing it quickly! Whether it works or not. But it’ll work out, right?”
“It depends on whether there are any guys around or not.”
It was true that the two men had no ‘hunting experience here’.
But I just had enough ‘hunting experience’.
Especially before meeting Galen, Lilia was only a priestess at the time, and had a nanny named Jenny by her side, so she couldn’t hunt recklessly. If she didn’t study the habits of the evil species and prepare thoroughly, she would get scolded by Jenny.
The fact that each evil species is given a score means, in other words, that evil species with scores appear in the hunting grounds.
The two had already simulated dozens of possible scenarios.
If there is a hot prey lying on terrain that is ‘higher than the surroundings’ and has a ‘clear view’ like now.
It stands out very well on the eyes and nose of the flying demon.
Well, it wouldn’t be of much use if there were no evil spirits around at all… … .
“Oh, it’s coming!”
As the two entered the entrance of the rocky mountain, Lilia smiled brightly.
Galen couldn’t even see the black dot properly, but Lilia could see it clearly.
“You’re lucky. It happened in one go.”
Galen smiled and held out his hand. Lilia nodded and handed him the bag again.
Lilia, her body lightened, climbed the mountain stealthily, moving between the shadows of the rocks.
Galen also hid behind a suitable rock.
After waiting for a while, he could gradually distinguish the appearance of the evil spirit in his eyes.
Two wyverns circled the air.
“Kiiiii―”
The situation where freshly caught pork sashimi was served as if it were a meal was extremely suspicious.
The wyverns were relieved because there was nothing to be seen on the wide open rocky mountaintop without a single tree.
The intelligence to detect a trap based on logic does not exist in the evil species whose behavior is closer to that of an animal.
The wyverns quickly descended, their appetites palating.
Shhhh!
That moment.
An angle where you can see Galen at the bottom of the mountain, but not the wyverns trying to lower their altitude and land on the summit.
Ta-da-da-dak!
Lilia started running furiously along the road.
The wyverns, sensing something ominous, grabbed the phoenixes with their claws and quickly flew back up.
Immediately after, Lilia reached the summit.
Towards the wyverns, who were already in the air and thought to be safe.
Phew!
She kicked the floor with all her might.
The leaping power that even used blessings in an instant was terrifying.
The wyverns, who had not yet gained speed, could not avoid Lilia’s approach.
Whisper!
The momentum of the flying spear passed by, cutting off the neck of one of the wyverns.
Because it didn’t contain much power, the solid scales resisted strongly and slowed down Lilia’s speed.
“Shut up.”
Using that, she twisted her body in the air and landed lightly on the back of one of the surviving wyverns.
Lilia waved her hand towards Galen on the ground and shouted brightly.
“I’ll go do some reconnaissance!”
Are you unfamiliar with the terrain of the hunting grounds?
Then, just go and see for yourself.