Chapter 59: A Sudden Turn (1)


    Could it be due to that big mistake we made once before?


    Ever since we reorganized our positions, our party has been progressing smoothly.


    “Lord! Bestow upon me your light! Allow me to bring divine punishment upon these vile creatures!”


    Helena, still exhibiting an almost berserk-like behavior, raged uncontrobly.


    Tearing and killing.


    Her actions resembled a scene straight out of a sher movie.


    Her deep-seated hatred and anger towards the monsters emanated fiercely from her, juxtaposed with her warm divine power that shone like the sun on everyone. It felt so unbnced.


    However, focusing solely on killing monsters like that inevitably left one vulnerable.


    Indeed, there was an Evil Rabbit about to leap down from a tree, targeting the unaware Helena.


    “Arghhhh!”


    <em>Swish.</em>


    With a forceful shout and a swing, a de easily sliced the creature in two, so there was no need to worry.


    Perhaps Vincent still felt uneasy looking at the Evil Rabbit. His eyes were narrowed, and his hands trembled.


    But he didn’t run away and managed to swing his sword effectively.


    Although he still seemed far from his true potential, at least he was now able to fight.


    Lastly, I said,


    “Vincent! There’s one more behind Helena!”


    “On it!”


    Utilizing my broad field of view, I also gave out simplemands.


    “Burn, explode, and consume. Fireball!”


    From time to time, I also bombarded clusters of monsters with spells.


    “You think you’re fierce?!”


    <em>“Kiiiiieeek!!”</em>


    I also stabbed a dagger into the belly of a few monsters that tried to target me directly, bypassing Helena and Vincent.


    …Wasn’t it strange that I had so much to do?


    Anyway, as we focused on what each of us could do, our party surprisingly moved forward quite efficiently.


    Thanks to that, even Vincent and Helena, who were initially uncertain, wore bright smiles.


    “Hahaha! I had many worries at first… but isn’t this a pretty good party?”


    “Isn’t it all thanks to Mr. Yandel, who turned our weaknesses into strengths?”


    “…Anyone could have thought of that. Please don’t tter me too much, Priestess Helena.”


    “True, anyone could think of it. But being able to make it work is purely due to your ability. Just ept our praise.”


    “Haha! Priestess Helena is right! You deserve it!”


    Come on… this was just a low-level dungeon.


    Given time, a top-tier student could clear it by himself, except for the boss.


    Of course, excluding Vincent, the coward.


    He was really just a liability until his awakening event.


    However, once awakened, he would be a valuable character… But to be honest, I didn’t y male characters that often.


    Why y a male character when there are plenty of beautiful and good female ones?


    Anyway, the two were so excited that I felt a bit guilty for secretly wondering how to obtain the hidden piece.


    So, I awkwardly changed the topic with augh.


    “Anyway, let’s start collecting the horns.”


    “You’re feeling shy.”


    “He’s blushing.”


    Vincent and Helena began to collect the horns of the Evil Rabbits while chuckling.


    Given therge number of Evil Rabbits we faced this time, they spent a good while gathering all of them.


    Suddenly, Helena tilted her head and said,


    “Isn’t it a bit odd? Even if the Evil Rabbits lived in groups, too many appeared all of a sudden. This is almost like the number you’d encounter after triggering a lure trap.”


    “What? Perhaps we’re near a rabbit den. It’s just points rolling in for us, then. Shouldn’t we be happy? Hahaha!”


    Vincent, who hadn’t gotten used to the monster corpses yet, was working with his eyes wide open,ughing heartily.


    Well, it wasn’t that I couldn’t understand him.


    Even after bing a part of ss A… or rather, because he was in ss A—grades were even more important.


    The academy divided the sses based on grades, and the treatment varied drastically ording to the ss.


    It could also be seen as a kind of bait to stimte the students’ desire to improve.


    It wasn’t that there was a penalty for being in a lower ss, but wasn’t it natural for humans to feel envious of the privileges of the upper ss?


    If it was frustrating, the students just had to train harder and be stronger.


    But what could be the bait for ss A, the top ss?


    Simple. Offer rare treasures that are generally unattainable.


    In ss A, grades were settled once a semester to tally points.


    And with these points, you could purchase magic tools made by the academy’s professors, elixirs, or even rare items.


    Ah, of course, you could also exchange them for money.


    This had a pretty good exchange rate, so students who were financially strapped often bought a certain amount of money with their points first.


    Anyway, Vincent probably had his eyes on the system, which was referred to as the “achievement shop” among users.


    But Helena, befitting of a priestess, had always had mild greed and continued to be anxious.


    Deciding to alleviate Helena’s worries since they were brought up, I said,


    “Priestess Helena, you’re right about the sudden increase in Evil Rabbits. There’s arge rock nearby, so let’s take a look from there. If anything’s amiss, we’ll retreat immediately.”


    “Ah! Sounds good! Let’s do that then!”


    Helena, who seemed a bit relieved, smiled shyly. It was hard to believe she had disassembled a monster with her bare hands just five minutes ago.


    In fact, there was a reason why there were so many monsters around here.


    It was because of the hidden piece on the rock I pointed out earlier… they were attracted to the aura emitted by the transformed magic herb.


    The magic herb, a nt already rich in magic, underwent a mutation due to excessive magic, turning it into a transformed magic herb.


    While it wasn’t as effective as a professionally made elixir, it was a medicinal herb that could lead to decent growth in the early stages.


    Moreover, wasn’t magic, or “mana”, a crucial stat for a mage like me?


    The only regrettable thing was that, unlike monsters and ordinary resources, special items like the transformed magic herb didn’t regenerate in respawn-type dungeons.


    It was natural in games to prevent yers from infinitely farming rare items, but this was the reality.


    There was probably a reason why some items didn’t respawn. Although I didn’t know what they were.


    Thinking so, I finally resumed walking after storing thest horn in my inventory.


    Luckily, we didn’t encounter any monsters in the meantime.


    <hr>


    <em>“Phew…</em> No wonder it couldn’t be found.“


    As I thought of a reason for how I found this hidden piece, I climbed the rock alone.


    In a small crevice there, a snow-white herb had grown, which was indeed the transformed magic herb.


    I swiftly plucked it and put it in my inventory.


    At the same time, a clear notification sound rang out.


    <em>Ding!</em>


    【You''ve found the hidden treasure of the dungeon!】


    【Achievement Unlocked! You''ve earned the new title, ''Novice Treasure Hunter''!】


    【Title: Novice Treasure Hunter】


    Description: You have discovered the existence of hidden treasures in the dungeon. These range from naturally generated items to powerful relics sealed with monsters 300 years ago.


    If you can obtain them, they will surely aid you in your journey.


    But be careful. You''re not the only one who knows this secret.


    - > All actions in the dungeon will receive a positive effect of a 1% boost.


    - > The probability of being ambushed by adventurers in the dungeon increases by 3%.