kscans

Chapter 605 - The Path to Treasure

"Hmm... It's the shell of a ghost mole. Same as before."

"Well, yeah. So that means?"

"Yep, the quality is mediocre. Not quite sturdy enough for weapons or armor, I'd say?"

Nia examined the mountain of shells and came to a conclusion in a matter of seconds. But of course, that didn't mean it was time to pack up and leave. The other three of us tilted our heads in curiosity and wonder at what this massive pile was, and the artisan explained.

"This is probably a pile of 'failures.' That's why it's been discarded here, I think."

"Failures...? So, you're saying this is a pile of trash?"

"Probably. And while it's generally mediocre, the quality of each individual piece is all over the place. It's kind of like... the pile of prototypes we artisans make. I get that kind of vibe."

"I see, I see?"

I asked for more details with a prompt, Lux nodded along as if she understood but definitely didn't, and Sora-san hid behind my back in front of the strange, mysterious object.

When it comes to battle or emergencies, she shows no lack of courage, but in normal times, she's still pretty much like this. At her core, she's a fifteen-year-old young lady. It's cute.

"So yeah, the quality of this stuff itself is low... or rather, it's rough and doesn't seem very useful, but—hi-yah!"

As she spoke, Nia, who had been glaring at the mountain of shells, suddenly swung her hand. A flash of light shot out from her index and middle fingers, which were clad in a light effect.

It wasn't enough to slice the whole thing in two, but the blue light easily cut through the shell of the [Feidran Armoire]—which we had confirmed to be quite hard in battle—like a knife through butter. It wasn't a crazy sharp attack skill, but a mako-tree exclusive skill called 《Saidansha no Mite》, which only works on objectified 'materials.' Wielding the light that I had seen countless times during the event's development work, Nia cut and dug through the mountain with a series of crisp sounds...

"—And there we go. It's small, but... I wouldn't call this low quality, would I?"

In her hand, she held a sparkle of pale crimson, different from the golden color of the wealthy carapace. The light of a precious stone, one that you could tell was a 'treasure' at a glance. And it wasn't a raw stone, but a piece that shone with a deep brilliance, as if it had been polished... or condensed.

"Unlike the 'ants' that just hoard things... I think those things refine the gems they eat inside their shells. In that sense, they're like us artisans, too."

"...It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Sora-san, who had been watching in surprise as Nia began to dig with unexpected vigor, was now gazing at the gem with sparkling eyes. Even as a guy, seeing the real thing in the virtual world gets me pretty excited. It's a natural reaction for a girl.

Among the girls, only Lux, who responded with a simple "Huh," and started poking at the shell, was the exception... or rather, she was probably in the minority.

"By the way, this is a [Putong Rubellite]. It's not supposed to be anything special in terms of rarity... but this one has surpassed its original quality. It's not quite first-class, but it's become a 'good thing,' maybe second-class or just below."

"Just as I thought," she concluded, suggesting she had a good idea of what was going on from the moment she first appraised the mole's shell.

In other words, here's what's going on.

"So, high expectations... or rather, it's pretty much confirmed, right?"

"Correct—this place is definitely a quality over quantity type. If we can find a gem that was already high-ranking to begin with, refined just like this rubellite..."

As if to say it belonged to the discoverer, she handed the gem she had picked up to Lux.

"That might be a little exciting."

The [Milmarinus], renowned as a jewel crafter, gave her cheerful seal of approval.

◇◆◇◆◇

"—Sora!"

"Yes!"

I deflected the swung tail—or rather, the lower body with short legs attached to its end—with my left arm, which had the [An=Lu Galta (Hypothesis: Armor Singing of the King's Road)] activated, and called out at the same time. Instantly, a giant sand sword flew in and pushed the two [Feidran Armoire], which I had guided into position, all the way to the wall. A rather loud crash and tremor shook the cave, but we had already confirmed that the passage structure wouldn't budge from that much force.

The two that were sent flying would be dealt with by my partner, who was in top form today. With that decided, I turned on my heel and headed towards Lux, who was facing two more great earth moles. ...I knew she didn't need any help either, but.

"I'll take one."

"Thaaanks!"

She usually solos, but it seems she doesn't dislike party play. When I offered my support succinctly, she gave me a frank and cheerful smile... and since I didn't mind that, I happily took on one of them as declared.

After an hour of exploring, I've gotten used to dealing with these things. They have a shell that nullifies—or rather, dampens the power of low-intensity magic to the point of dissipating it. Even without that, their bodies are generally tough and resistant to normal blades.

For foes like that, this is the best way—《Frezon Revolver》, activate. I loaded my left fist, which was clad in a gauntlet, with the maximum number of rounds. Without any feints, I charged straight ahead and swung my arm. The great earth mole took a defensive posture, and,

"'Sextuple.'"

The moment my fist (spear) and its shell (shield) made contact, the latter, along with its master, exploded with a roar. The mole burst into blue phosphorescence, and the fragments of its shattered shell scattered with a clatter. What incredible power, my favorite. The name Revolver Punch isn't just for show.

The predecessor, 《Elfast Ruger》, had only one shot and was a bit awkward to use, but after evolving, it became a god-tier skill with an increased bullet count of six and a massive power boost. It's good for imbuing my fist with power to increase the force of my punches, like now, or for firing it as a long-range attack, true to its name. Furthermore, each shot has its own independent cooldown of just under twenty seconds, which is extremely short. It's a 'fist enhancement & range extension skill' that's so simple, easy to use, and powerful that I might end up using it for all my mob fights—but that aside.

Lux, who was doing something similar right next to me, seemed to have finished her fight in seconds, just like me. She turned around, dispersing the 'wind,' and grinned widely...

"Yay!"

"Yeah, yeah, yay."

I returned the high-five she offered with her hands held up playfully, and with a satisfying smack, Lux cheerfully flew off towards the back. She was probably targeting Nia, who was hiding behind a rock, terrified.

"—Even outside the circle, I wonder if this is overkill..."

"That's a 'you're one to talk' situation for all three of you, you know."

And in her place, my partner, who had also dispatched two of them in seconds, came to my side. Even though they have special defense against magic, the sand swords created by Sora's [Cradle of Sword-Craft] are a physical & magical hybrid. Even if only half of it gets through, there's no way for the enemy to escape the almost inexhaustible onslaught of magic swords. As always, in PvE where she doesn't feel any aversion, she's brokenly reliable.

"Ahaha... I wonder how far this goes on?"

"Who knows. I feel like we've gone pretty deep..."

Unlike before, where it had a semi-indoor feel, the party was now advancing through a completely enclosed space—a dark, suffocating, single-path cave. It's understandable considering the size of the moles that probably dug it, and it's spacious enough for Sora to swing her 'tower' freely... but when you can't see the sky, you suddenly feel a sense of pressure. Is that just an unavoidable psychological thing for humans?

We entered this large cave through another 'fissure' that Lux had found, and since then, we've been heading down, down, down, fighting off the moles that have become much more common, but we still haven't reached the end—but still, I can at least imagine what lies ahead.

"...It's probably there, right?"

"...It probably is, isn't it?"

Considering the atmosphere and the game's logic, it's hard to imagine that there isn't a master of the domain (boss) lurking in the deepest part. In other words, the place where the parent of those moles resides. And at that moment, we were both thinking the same thing.

""...""

Namely... "Please don't have a visual that's even more ridiculously grotesque than the minions." A hope that would most likely not be granted.