The Vengeful Spirit Cannon was the barrier to entry to the Dark Continent. When we left there, the lake we were in appeared and, behind it, a map divided into three main areas. The first was the Ria Aribeona. This route followed a river to a cascading lake, and if you went down it, it took you faster to the Dragon Mountain Range, located in the center of the Dark Continent.
That is also where the Bellarios appear.
The place where I could acquire the essence responsible for my Mana Resistance in the final stages of my cultivation strategy was in that mountain range. However, we wouldn't patrol there.
The second area was a wide jungle east of the estuary called the Great Forest. Because it was so large, the forest was subdivided into several zones, but that was the official name. The third was the Panthelion Ruins, located west of the estuary, the destination of the Fourth Patrol Squadron, which consisted of about thirty people, including me.
«All troops, on the march!»
The patrol squad arrived at the entrance to the ruins, adjusted our formation, and then officially entered the area. Of course, the purpose of creating a patrol squad was to proactively defend against possible ambushes, so we didn't travel deep into the ruins.
«First line, march!»
«Raise the shield wall!»
There were a lot of monsters here anyway.
«Krrrr...!» It started with modified beasts whose bodies were made of steel, like Golems.
¡Boom! ¡Boom!
Giant golems, magically designed.
¡Remolino!
Flying type monsters flew around like drones. The monsters that were asleep in the ruins sensed the presence of intruders and ran away. These monsters were not able to penetrate the first line of shields to reach us.
¡Kwa claim!
The monsters were obstructed by a huge wall of people. The spectacle was strange. I never thought the day would come when I would see someone's back from this angle.
This is what others would have seen when they looked at me.
Although I was overcome with a strange sensation, I hit the monsters that managed to escape to the sides with my hammer.
[You have launched Swing.]
[You have killed a giant Wolf. EXP +4]
Even though it was the seventh floor, the mid-range of the monsters at the entrance to the Pantheon Ruins was not very high, which meant that there was no monster that could survive more than a single blow. Perhaps because they were converted from machines, the feeling of hitting them was also strange.
¡Kakagak, rip, smash!
Ugh, but it's so convenient to just swing a hammer.
«First line aside!», the patrol commander soon shouted, and the tanks and their shields moved in unison, opening a path in the center. As a result, the monsters broke through the front.
«Leona was epura!» But a joint spell was already prepared in the rear.
¡Watch!
Something very similar to a laser cannon shot out from the center of the formation and made holes in about fifteen large monsters, interrupting their charge and allowing the remaining monsters to be quickly eliminated.
It's definitely easier to hunt in an assault team format. The first line is also stable with the priest here.
Although the average rank was low, it didn't take us more than ten minutes to eliminate almost a hundred monsters. It was natural, since there were more than thirty of us. Even if we killed a hundred, the benefits of this battle would not be so great once divided by the number of people.
«There was no essence, so we will collect the mana stones and continue advancing!»
The patrol squad continued hunting - no, patrolling - and followed the pre-planned route around the entrance to the ruins.
Wow, the amount of XP I got today has to exceed a hundred.
The number of new monsters he had killed during this patrol exceeded twenty. The monsters that appeared were low-ranking, but there were many unique creatures here that only inhabited this area.
«Good job everyone».
After patrolling for about ten hours, we let the next team take over our shift and returned to base. There, we received a fine from an administrative officer. Apparently, it confirmed our share of the loot from today's hunt. It looked like we could receive our payment by presenting it at the Ministry of Merit later in town.
«Hello.» When I turned around with my ticket, a suspicious man started talking to me.
I could only bow my head in confusion. «... Who are you?» Not only did I not remember making a friend like that, but I had never seen this guy.
«Why do you act like we don't know each other? I was by your side the whole fight».
Oh really? Come to think of it, he was...
From experience, it was better to overlook things like that and change the subject in these cases. «Oh, so what did you need?»
When I asked him why he had approached me, the anonymous man patted me on the shoulder as if he were my boss. «You were fighting very well there».
Hmm, had he come to socialize?
With that thought in mind, I decided to be humble for now. «You say that's good? You have low standards».
"¿What?"
For some reason, the man frowned. But that wasn't my problem. I took his hand off my shoulder. It was bothering me.
Tap.
If you want to make friends, choose a better way to get closer to them.
«So what do you want?»
When I asked again, the man's fake smile disappeared, and the next thing that came out of his mouth was something unexpected. «I thought I'd give you some advice».
«...Advice?»
«It seems that you have ignorantly turned to the Force. If you continue taking essences like this, one day you will be in great danger». He took out a dagger and cut off his arm. «See that? Even if you apply tons of force, it is difficult to cut. Adventurers should be well balanced like me, rather than relying solely on the Force...»
«Oh what, you were just an idiot? Oh, sorry. I forgot to say it in my head».
Although I apologized like a man, his expression turned stone and he glared at me.
Wow, it looks like they could knock you down with a simple tap. Who do you think you are to brag to me about your miserable Physical Resistance?
But just in case, I asked him his name first. «By the way, what's your name?»
«Melliver Ellain. »
What, you're not even a Hans?
«I see. See you».
«Sir, what are you doing there?»
«As you can see, someone is calling me», I told the man. Then, erasing the name I had just heard from my memory, I walked away.
***
So the name was Melliver... What was it like?
I didn't remember it and, unfortunately, I never saw that man again. After that, I continued to take on patrol duties, but each time I joined a different patrol unit. The reason was simple. Each patrol unit patrolled a single area. It was a sensible strategy from the Command's perspective. If each patrol squad was in charge of an area, they would become familiar with the terrain and work better as a group. Normally, it was impossible to change equipment every time... unless supported by a military high command.
«Raven, I heard the Eleventh Patrol Squad is going deep this time...»
«Okay. I will write you a recommendation.»
«Thank you.»
Thanks to Raven's help, I was able to visit the Aribeona Estuary and the Great Forest, as well as the Pantheon Ruins, to accumulate XP. Of course, I only ventured to the entrance and hadn't encountered most of the monsters yet, but I still accumulated XP every time I changed teams and time flew by until today.
[You have leveled up. Your Soul Power has increased by +30. The maximum number of essences you can absorb has increased by +1].
Finally, I reached level seven, which I had been striving for, and added a new essence slot. This meant I could add new synergies to my current combo.
Since our money problem is practically solved, I won't have to join the war effort next time. Starting next month, you should grow to get an essence. Oh, do I need a boat first?
As I pondered various things, I suddenly realized how quiet things were. «Raven?»
«What's happening?»
«Where are Erwen and Emily?»
«Emily left the barracks earlier to get some sleep and Erwen... I don't know. He followed that woman not long after».
«Hmm, or veo.»
«So, those are all the questions you have?» Raven had already taken her eyes off me and was reading a document.
Gosh, at least give me time to respond. Now that I think about it... It seems like I'm alone with her.
When I backed away and stopped talking so as not to disturb Raven's work, I realized how strange this moment seemed to me. That was because Amelia and Erwen had been constantly by my side since our reunion with Raven.
I should take this opportunity to ask you the question you had in mind.
«Um, Raven.»
«What is it this time?»
«That 'thing' you mentioned before... what was it?» I asked cautiously.
Raven's pen shook and stopped moving. He raised his eyes to look at me. «What do you mean?»
Wow, pretend I didn't know?
«What you mentioned in front of the steel bars. You said 'that thing' happened not long after you went to the Magic Tower».
«...I really don't want to talk about it. It's not important».
«Really? What a shame, then». No matter how much effort I put into pretending to be a barbarian 24 hours a day, I had no intention of being my usual rude right now. I backed out. «So how is your mother? Alright?» I decided to chat. It may also have been a sensitive topic, but it wasn't totally out of place to ask.
«Did you know... something already...?»
«¿Eh?»
When I tilted my head at his strange reaction, Raven quickly blurted out: «It's nothing. But... why are you suddenly asking about my mother? I don't see that's something that interests you».
Haha, I knew you'd say something like that.
«Why wouldn't it be? I was the one who convinced your mother to send you to the Magic Tower».
Raven shuddered. «What did you say?»
«I don't know if you remember, but there was a time when you came to the library after being hit by your mother. At that moment, you cried like a child and begged me for help-»
«I never did that!»
«Hey? I thought you didn't remember much of what happened then.»
«Still, I... am sure I would never have done that».
«¿In series?»
«I'm not in the mood so stop joking and tell me. Is what you said true? That... you convinced my mother?»
While I was at it, I told him more about what happened in the past. I had skipped it in the cage because I hadn't had time to get into the matter. However, he wanted to have a moment like that with her at least once. To be more exact, I wanted to know to what extent my presence had a positive impact on the overall chain of events. It was never known. There might come a day when I would have to use the Records Stone Fragment again.
Ah, but I should skip that part.
As he spoke, I made sure to skip parts of the conversation he had had with his mother. The reason was simple.
«That girl will abandon me. One day he will become a great person and despise me. Then, in the end, he will leave me behind for that world of his. Just like she did that day, since she is of his blood... Isn't that unfair? Why is that girl's life so easy? I gave birth to her, but no one in my entire life has helped me for that reason. But... why that girl...?»
How could he convey something so dark, and to the person in question himself?
«Forget what happened in the library and tell me once and for all. That day... what did you talk to my mother about?».
«You're welcome in particular. I tried to convince her to send you to the Magic Tower by telling her that I would pay all the expenses, but she refused».
«¿Se negó?»
«Oh, he turned down the money, to be exact. Apparently, someone had come from the Magic Tower a few days before. I guess you caught someone's attention, electrocuting people with magic wherever you went».
«I see... that's why he suddenly changed his mind...»
«Ahem, not to honk my own horn, but I'm kind of your savior in a way...» I implicitly advocated that interpretation, but Raven just ignored me.
Gosh, you're embarrassing me.
«So... what happened to your mother? Do you get along now?».
When I changed the subject again, Raven's response was frigid. «We can't, even if I wanted to».
« ... ¿Hmm? »
«She's already dead».
I was momentarily speechless and there was silence. «Ah, huh... Really? What a shame. She didn't seem to have any health problems...» I hadn't been this nervous in a while, so I tried to calm down and fix the problem, but I couldn't put the genie back in the bottle.
«It was not a health problem. It wasn't even an accident. And it wasn't at the end of its useful life either».
«...Do I know?»
«He hanged himself. It was about a month after I went to the Magic Tower. I was able to return home for the first time in a week thanks to some homework from the Master, and....» Raven's tone was calm as she spoke, as if she were simply reading an entry from an old diary she had found hidden in a corner of a warehouse, as if it were not her story at all. «There was a rotten smell in the bedroom. And that was my last memory of my mother... Don't look at me like that. I already got over it a long time ago. People die. It's nothing new».
Raven ended up being the one offering comfort instead of the other way around, while I ended up being unable to speak at all. The memory became increasingly clearer.
«Isn't it strange? Everything I have achieved in my life is in a single room in this landfill... What was the meaning of my life, then?».
That was the last conversation I had with his mother. After that, I saw her stumble in the back alley like a person who had been drained for a lifetime.
***
[Bjorn Yandle
Level: 7 (New +1)
Physical: 1230.39
Spirit: 443.3
Special ability: 1745.25 (New +39)
Item level: 8305
Overall combat power: 5495.19 (New +39)
Acquired Essences: Orc Hero – Rank 5 / Ogre – Rank 3 / Bayon – Rank 3 / Water Storm – Rank 3 / Vol-Herchan – Rank 3 / Gachabone – Rank 6].