Just as humans make little use of the power of the Danger Beasts, they also know little about them.
Especially the Super Danger Beasts among them—each one could be called a living legend.
Many of these creatures have never even been seen by people. Only a few scattered tales circulate about them, and some have left not even a shred of legend behind.
To collect materials, Zeroy and Patchouli had to travel everywhere to investigate.
It was through this deep exploration that Zeroy realized something: in truth, the Danger Beasts were the true protagonists of this world.
This world contains vast uncharted zones untouched and unknown by humans. Such no-man's-lands exist because humans cannot defeat the Super Danger Beasts and thus cannot open them up.
Many powerful Imperial Arms are made from scraps of these Super Danger Beasts.
The gap between humans and their power isn't small at all. The only reason humans still exist is because the strongest Super Danger Beasts simply have no interest in them; otherwise, humanity would likely be long gone.
Now, Patchouli sought materials by venturing deep into these no-man's-lands—
The afterglow of sunset streamed through the forest like molten gold, a gauzy halo draping the murmuring stream, its surface rippling gently with the breeze.
Zeroy sat on a mossy blue stone by the creek, fingertips brushing the smooth skin of her thigh as she slowly rolled down the stockings that lightly pressed into her flesh, the motion graceful yet casual.
Her fair, slender legs were completely exposed to the air, their skin glowing with a soft luster in the twilight, as delicate as porcelain.
She dipped her snow-white bare feet into the icy stream, rounded toes playfully tapping the water to send out rings of ripples.
Her golden hair became a flowing veil of gold in the breeze and evening light, every strand haloed in brilliance, like a fairy from myth descending to the mortal world with an otherworldly grace.
"Patchi, what exactly is the last material we need?"
Zeroy's voice carried a lazy boredom.
As she spoke, her bare feet kicked up a string of droplets, the water running down her elegantly curved calves like dewdrops sliding across creamy jade—a casual motion filled with quiet allure.
They had been searching for three days this time, yet still hadn't found the material Patchouli wanted.
They had already been outside the Main God Space for over a month, and now each day cost them 1000 Points to remain in the outside world.
It wasn't a real problem—just a bit of Points.
The main thing was that during this time, they stayed entirely invisible, focusing on stealth and avoiding trouble whenever possible.
That left Zeroy somewhat bored, so she finally turned her attention to the material hunt.
Before this, she simply followed whatever Patchouli said to do without question.
As for why they moved invisibly, it was because these no-man's-lands had developed complete and stable ecosystems.
Almost every creature in these ecosystems was a Danger Beast. Even those at the bottom of the chain were still Danger Beasts; ordinary animals were virtually nonexistent.
Charging in recklessly or stirring things up could cause serious chaos, possibly even breaking the fragile coexistence between humans and Danger Beasts.
If it really came to that, it would be a huge problem, because Zeroy and Patchouli weren't strong enough to suppress every Danger Beast.
For example, there was that dragon they once encountered in the sea of clouds, whose hair was the main ingredient of a certain Imperial Arm.
That dragon was more than a match for both Zeroy and Patchouli together—and that's not even counting the weakening effect of [Nonhuman Killer LV3].
If they truly fought to the death, they could endlessly kite it and wear it down, but that would take an enormous amount of time.
That dragon was a full-fledged mythical creature. A single claw was as large as the peak of a mountain, and it possessed the intelligence to communicate.
When they met by chance, it even praised Zeroy and Patchouli for their efforts to set humanity in order, and gifted them two priceless materials—a pair of shed reverse scales.
Patchouli stood on the riverbank nearby, her purple long dress swaying slightly in the breeze like a blooming violet.
She lowered her head to the magic book in her hands. The pages turned themselves beneath her fingertips, emitting a faint violet glow.
Her violet eyes were focused and deep, reflecting the runes on the pages.
"I don't know either."
Patchouli closed the magic book with a soft sound, the rune-light dimming as she did.
She walked closer and sat beside the creek, her skirt spreading across the grass in an elegant arc.
Her composed, dignified movements formed a sharp contrast to Zeroy's casualness, radiating a unique charm—intellectual and reserved, like stars in the night sky: quiet yet captivating.
"You don't know?"
Zeroy couldn't help but glance sideways. Such an answer was unexpected.
"I use astrology and similar divination arts. They point me to where I need to find my materials. It doesn't matter if I don't even know what the material is."
"Huh—that's really convenient. But can those astrological arts even work in different worlds?"
She wasn't referring to mundane astrology that predicts by charting stars.
Even if it was magic, if it's astrology, shouldn't it require some understanding of the stars? But the stars of this other world might be completely different, maybe just decorations, or even an entirely fake sky.
"Do you think astrology is so inconvenient?"
Patchouli countered softly.
Zeroy didn't understand, but as long as it worked, that was fine.
"If you're bored, you could go back to handle the human side of things first. I'll call you when I find the material."
"Bored, maybe, since we have to restrain ourselves to avoid stirring up trouble. But leaving Patchi out here alone? That option doesn't exist."
Zeroy lay back on the grass and waved a hand.
"A little boredom, that's all. I'll definitely help Patchi find the material first."
"I just wanted to ask if there's anything else I can do to help besides fighting and harvesting materials, or any way to speed things up."
"A way to speed it up..."
Patchouli murmured, thinking.
Zeroy didn't disturb her, simply watching the sky as the sun slowly set and stars gradually emerged.
"Give me your hand."
"Okay."
Zeroy sat up and placed her hand in Patchouli's palm.
After the touch, Patchouli seemed dissatisfied and adjusted their grasp until their fingers were interlocked.
"Does this do anything?"
Seeing Patchouli close her eyes to sense something while she felt nothing, Zeroy couldn't help asking.
"Quiet."
"...Oh."
...
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