Right at the start of the third day, at 00:51, we left the Glacier Cave and returned to the Crystal Cave. Many troublesome things had happened, but the income from this crevice was off the charts. Jencia's team, Mr. Bear's 5 million stones, and the Yeti and Guardian essences—as a reward for clearing a first-floor crevice—we saw an outrageous profit. I earned less than 2 million stones in two months with a group of five on the fourth floor.
Damn.
I realized once again that I could only receive this kind of luck by first going through all kinds of shit.
King!
Soon Missha cut down an approaching Leaf Wolf with her new sword and exclaimed in admiration, "Ooh! What is this sword? It's so beautiful!" It was still the same one-shot kill sword, but apparently it had a different feel.
"You'll know the details only after the appraisal, but there's a high possibility it's a numbered item."
"A numbered item? Then it's not very expensive?"
Seeing Missha's nervous expression, I laughed involuntarily. It wasn't just the Serpent Fang. The leather greaves were also high-quality equipment, since they were made of wyvern leather, a second-grade material.
With these specifications, I don't have to worry until the fifth floor.
I felt as if I had completed a task. Since the initial and mid-level adjustments were finished, I would be able to support the weight of one person without further improvements for a while.
"So, shall we go to the second floor now?"
"We should."
I followed the compass with Missha. The purpose of entering the maze this time had been achieved, but it was a waste to spend the rest of the time playing games.
Even though we don't have a scout... maybe we can reach the third floor if we're lucky.
Nevertheless, Missha took full responsibility for the monsters we encountered along the way. Now that her sword had changed and her stats had increased significantly, she had to get used to her new senses.
"Uh, Bjorn? I think I'm done."
"Are you sure?"
"Uh...what...Noooo...I'll continue. But...I'm asking just in case...It's not because you're too lazy, is it?"
"Are you doubting me?"
"N-no! Never. Why would I do that?!"
Whether I had reasonable suspicion of Missha or not, I moved in comfortably and helped her with her training. Her sword was new, but she also needed to get used to the new essence. Seeing this made me feel pleased.
I really didn't expect the guardian's essence to come out.
As for the frozen route, the essence of the werewolf worked as well as that of a Yeti.
[Lawolf – Rank 7]
Agility +10, Cutting Strength +12, Cold Sensitivity +15, Cold Resistance +10, Physical Resistance +7, Fighting Spirit +10].
He had Cutting Strength, which was the core of sword-type characters, and his passive ability was too good to be true.
[(P) Snowfield Blood – Increases Sensitivity to Cold 1.5 times].
Not only did it shine in the second half, but it also had good synergy with the Yeti's Cold Condensation. The same was true for active skills.
(A) Ice Crush – Slightly increases the damage dealt to enemies in the Frozen state, and greatly increases the damage dealt to enemies in the Frozen state].
No need to explain this one, so I'll pass.
[(A) Strength – Overrides the Inability to Act status].
Although it had the drawback of consuming a lot of soul power, Fortress was also a good ability that greatly increased the stability of damageers vulnerable to Cold Condensation.
Above all, with this, I don't need to worry so much about the Mana Resistance stat.
Originally, we could only choose one of these abilities, but what Missha absorbed was nothing other than the Guardian's essence. Not only could he use both abilities, but the stats were 1.5 times higher than normal essences.
«If possible, try to attack somewhere other than vital organs.»
«Uh, but he still dies from a blow...»
«Then punch him.»
«Ok-huh? He keeps dying from a blow».
I licked my lips as I watched the Bladed Wolf freeze in an ice cube with a punch with Cold Condensation. Was it because it was a level 9 monster? Before the blow connected with Ice Crushing, it turned into light and disappeared, so Missha was unable to train properly.
«You can do the rest on the next floor».
«.... Do I have to continue?»
Tsk, who do you think you're trying to scam?
«Repito…»
«I know. The easy way is the slow one.»
True.
Seeing me speechless, Missha took the lead with a smile. He seemed to be having fun judging by the gentle swaying of the tip of his tail.
...If I ever do something wrong, I'll have to pretend to lose the argument to make her feel better.
Writing this down as number 13 of the Missha Manual in my head, I followed the excited beastwoman. Time passed like this, until about seven hours had passed since we left the crack.
We should be in the dark zone.
I stopped dead.
¡Wooooom!
The ground shook slightly and the crystals embedded in the cave walls began to glow brightly. The color of the glow also changed from soft purple to deep red.
I expected it, but it seems like it was actually invoked.
It meant that the Lord of the First Floor had been summoned.
«It's nothing, keep moving».
«It's nothing? I have never seen anything like it in my life...»
«Someone just invoked the Lord of the Floor. There will be no sequels, so no...»
«That? The Lord of the Soil?!»
Gosh, my eardrums. Perhaps the Lord of the Third Floor was still a trauma to her. Missha threw a tantrum and clung to me. Well, there's no need to be so surprised.
«Missha, calm down».
Unlike the third floor, the Lord on the first floor was calm. The summoning method was based on a probability when more than five people gathered at a location after the three-day mark. Once summoned, the portal remained open and the monsters that appeared did not change either. Above all, once summoned Riakis massacred throughout the field until he died, but this guy would simply disappear silently if the raid failed.
«Are we okay?»
«Yes, so don't worry».
After calmly explaining the situation, Missha took a deep breath and regained her composure. But when anxiety subsided, curiosity flourished instead. «But who the hell invoked him by mistake? Everyone knows that no more than five people should be here at a time».
«Well, maybe it wasn't a mistake».
«Wasn't it a mistake?»
I shrugged and fell silent. It was very likely that the person who bought the strategy for the man on the first floor of the community had summoned her... But he couldn't tell her that just like that, right?
What a bad temper. The preparation period should have been only two weeks.
Another possibility is that they were not impatient, but had enough influence to complete all the preparations in that time.
Maybe I can find out who that user is.
He was determined to find out if there was a rumor that a clan or group had managed to hunt down the Land Lord once he was back in town. He was beginning to feel Rotmiller's absence again.
Geez, to think it would take almost a whole day.
After wandering here and there with only the direction of the compass, we arrived at the second floor portal. What I chose was the Land of the Dead, which was connected to the Ghoul District in the south.
[You have entered the Land of the Dead on the second floor].
Moisture-soaked black earth, exceptionally narrow visibility even for the second floor, and the screams of the banshees as background music; For some reason, when I set foot on the ground, a nostalgic feeling blossomed.
«How long without seeing each other».
It was here that Ainar and I broke some skeleton bones, beat the Death Demons into mochi, and met that psycho bitch and almost died.
Damn sea.
Was it because I remembered that time? Suddenly I felt my spirits drop.
«Ugh, this place always gives me bad energy. I prefer the Rrrockas desert».
«Rotmiller is not here so there is no choice.»
Since this was the center we could go anywhere, but I chose the Land of the Dead for one simple reason. From the maps on the second floor, it was easier to get to the third. We'd probably get a little lost in the end, but for now we just needed to go north.
Besides, it's just the two of us, so I should summon the Death Knight and catch him before we leave.
I didn't really need the essence, but this monster was difficult to catch when there were five of us, so I decided to supply experience points now. Aside from a few cracks, it was a monster that you could only find on the sixth floor.
Since he is a rank 6 monster, I can now prove how strong he is.
Of course, before summoning him, Missha would have to complete her training.
«Let's go»
Moving north, we quickly escaped from the area where rank 9 monsters such as skeletons and ghouls appeared. It took us about five hours. The terrain changed from a wet swamp to hard stone.
«¡Kwooooh!»
Shortly after, a Death Demon appeared. The so-called «novice cutters» walked in groups of four, since it was the third day. In the past, Ainar and I went through a lot of trouble just to catch one.
Well, now I have obtained a body that will not die, even if it wants to be beaten to death.
The Death Demon was a monster specialized in defense and regeneration. He summoned spawns, but there was no way a level 9 would be able to deal with them. Simply put, he was the perfect opponent to test Missha's new abilities.
«I'll divert your attention, so don't worry and focus on using your new skills».
«Okay.»
«¡Behell-ahhhhh!»
As soon as I released Wild Burst, the Death Demon, who had been watching us from the border, screamed and charged.
«¡Kwooooh!»
First I blocked two of them with my shield, then I bent down and sent another one aside. Last time I let him hit me because he couldn't bother me.
Hit!
Maybe it was because it was the first rank 8 monster I had successfully hunted, but a strange feeling came over me. In the past, only one of them left me without energy.
«¡¿Kuwogh ?!»
When I pushed harder with the shield, the bastard Death Demons were thrown away helplessly.
«Not yet?»
«¡He finished!»
Missha finished casting Enhanced Cold Condensation and brandished the Snake Fang.
"Kak!
It was blocked by the hand shield of a death demon, made of bones and muscles, but it was not a significant defense. The hand froze to the elbow in one fell swoop.
[Missha Karlstein has released Ice Crushing].
When Missha brandished the other knife at the now frozen area, it shattered and scattered all over the ground.
«Kwu...ogh?» The wound could not regenerate even with Body Preservation because it had the cold attribute. He didn't even seem to feel pain, and he only had a confused look on his face. However, he seemed to instinctively feel that this was dangerous.
[Death Demon has released Call of the Dead].
When four monsters released the summoning ability at the same time, the number of ghouls that emerged from the ground reached a whopping forty. Of course, this didn't mean much either. My body, once easily torn by his nails, was now covered by a shell of lithinum. With an added boost of Physical Stamina, it was quite durable even with bare skin.
«Grrrrr...?»
I didn't shed blood even from a beating, really. Even if he did, he would melt the hands of acid-intolerant ghouls. But the wound healed quickly even in the midst of that.
«Bjorn... Are you... some kind of monster?»
How can you call a person a monster?
Hiding my pride, I replied grumbling: «Stop standing and get rid of him».
Gosh, once the adjustments were completed, I wouldn't even look like a person.
***
After that, we continued their training as we advanced north. Thanks to that, Missha got an idea of how much she had to freeze to determine if it was Frozen or Frozen. Having encountered the Chimera Wolf, who had a disabling ability, he also perfectly mastered Fortress.
«Um, so good? I just put more strength into it and it works».
After he learned how to do it, I advised him to only use it when absolutely necessary, as it consumed a lot of soul energy. If he ran out of soul power, he wouldn't be able to use Upgrade, Grant Toxin, Crush Ice, or anything like that.
«Do I look like a girl to you?»
He wasn't wrong. That was because she only had two abilities, even when she reached level 4. She wouldn't have to trace her soul power in case she ran out.
Even if I keep telling her this, it won't be as effective as letting her experience it for herself.
For that reason, we continue to strive to hunt. As a result of exercising his abilities recklessly every time, his soul power hit rock bottom.
«...I feel a little strange. It's not like my body is tired or anything, but should I say it feels empty?»
«That's why I told you to distribute it well».
«...I thought it would be so good.»
It was time to rest, so we prepared to camp. We found a building with a wall, and while we lit a fire there, we took turns sleeping. How much time passed?
«Hahaha it's true?»
«That's right, my friend».
A chattering sound came from a distance of 20 or 30 meters. At first I thought they were just passing explorers, but as I continued to hear conversations, they seemed to have calmed down without knowing we were camping nearby.
Well, anyway, it's time to wake up Missha. No need to tell them to get lost.
He spent the remaining time with a generous heart.
«By the way, this barbarian is sleeping without worrying about anything».
«Be still. Could wake up».
«Let him sleep. It is an expensive body. I should sleep while I can».
I heard something I couldn't pass up.
¡Honkkkkk!
Looking at it now, it was clear that a barbarian baby was sleeping among a group of hyenas.