Chapter 34

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on January 22, 2025

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Suddenly, three chests appeared out of nowhere.

Ulan and his party stared at them blankly.

“What are those?”

“Ho, could they be traps?”

Unlike Ivella, who was curious, Silfi glared at the chests with a wary expression.

This attitude wasn’t excessive.

Sometimes, when exploring ancient ruins, you come across monsters disguised as chests.

‘But…’

These aren’t monsters.

There was no sense of hostility, nor the distinct smell of monsters.

They’re just ordinary chests.

Just as he was about to explain this,

“Huh? There’s something written on the floor.”

Ivella pointed at the chests.

The script of the Desert Kingdom.

Silfi immediately began translating.

“Your teamwork as three heroes has shone, and we congratulate you on passing the final trial. You are now worthy of receiving a reward.”

The chests were rewards for passing the trial.

Silfi’s expression relaxed, relieved that they weren’t traps.

“So that means…”

“Each of us gets to choose one?”

There were three of them, and exactly three chests.

As Ulan’s eyes sparkled,

“Huh? There’s something written here too.”

Silfi pointed to a section of the collapsed wall. Unlike before, it was a lengthy passage, as if it contained important information.

“Can you read it?”

“Of course! I’ll translate it right away!”

With a confident nod,

Silfi continued.

“To the heroes who have reached the end of the trial, I shall reveal the method to defeat the Blood Golem. Huh?”

A method to defeat the Blood Golem?

But we already defeated it?

Silfi blinked her wide eyes in confusion. But only for a moment, as she continued translating.

“First, after the Golem awakens, return the accompanying undead to the earth. This will weaken the Blood Golem, allowing you to damage it even without the Bloodstone.”

“Wait, weaken it?”

Ivella asked, visibly flustered.

Silfi also looked puzzled.

“…Only those with the courage to face the Blood Golem, the strength to defeat the army of the undead, and the observational skills to find this advice will truly overcome the final trial.”

After swallowing hard,

Silfi read the final paragraph.

“I hope you find this advice. The Blood Golem is the ultimate tactical weapon, equivalent to a thousand warriors. It is nearly impossible to defeat it by any means other than those mentioned above…”

The writing on the wall ended there.

After Silfi finished translating,

The room fell silent, as if cold water had been poured over everyone.

This advice was a strategy.

A hint on how to defeat the Blood Golem.

And they found it after the battle was already over.

Just as they were feeling a sense of emptiness, Ivella’s eyes suddenly widened like a startled rabbit.

“W-wait! That means…”

When they first encountered the Blood Golem,

What Silfi had said might have been true.

The advice also stated that without weakening it, the Golem was as strong as a thousand warriors.

As this realization dawned,

Ivella and Silfi simultaneously turned their heads.

“How on earth did you defeat it?”

“Huh? How did you defeat it?!”

Their gazes turned to Ulan.

He had single-handedly defeated the ultimate tactical weapon without weakening it.

Their eyes shone, demanding an answer.

Ulan silently raised his axe.

“It’s thanks to this axe.”

“That is…”

“An axe made of Bloodstone.”

“R-really?!”

Silfi was shocked.

“Where did you get something like this…?”

“My master gave it to me when I left the tribe. My master is a great sorcerer, so I think he must have foreseen something like this happening.”

Ajuheuh is a powerful sorceress.

Even her disciple, Noa, has the power to foresee the future. So this speculation isn’t entirely baseless.

Ulan judged it so.

After explaining the whole story,

Ivella and Silfi looked half-convinced.

After all, they had fulfilled one of the two methods to defeat the Blood Golem.

The party turned their attention back to the chests.

Now that they knew these were rewards, all that was left was to decide who would choose which reward.

“It says here, from left to right: Warrior’s Chest, Growth Chest, Scholar’s Chest.”

“At least we have a choice.”

Ulan chuckled.

Then the two girls stared intently at Ulan.

The meaning of their gaze was simple. They were offering him the first choice. After all, without Ulan, they wouldn’t have made it this far.

Ulan seemed to understand this and silently accepted their offer.

“I’ll choose this one.”

The red chest, the Warrior’s Chest.

He wasn’t sure if it was a mistake, but the moment he saw the chest, he felt an inexplicable pull.

Next was Ivella’s turn.

“Then can I choose this one?”

“The Growth Chest?”

“Yeah. I really felt it this time.”

That she still lacked strength.

Ivella desperately desired growth in her swordsmanship. So she chose the Growth Chest.

“Now all that’s left is…”

“Silfi’s turn.”

The purple chest, the Scholar’s Chest.

It was the smallest of the three. Hearing this, Silfi flustered and waved her hands.

“Ah! I don’t need a reward. I didn’t really help anyway, so it’s fine if I don’t get one…”

“You were helpful. You deserve it.”

“B-but…”

Silfi hesitated.

Then Ivella grabbed her hand.

“Just take it. Without you, we wouldn’t have been able to read the Desert Kingdom’s script.”

This was a clear fact.

Ulan also nodded in agreement.

Silfi blinked her large eyes and asked again.

“R-really? Did I really help?”

“A lot.”

The immediate answer came without hesitation.

Silfi bowed her head deeply.

Her eyes seemed to waver for some reason.

After a moment, she clenched her fists and then smiled brightly.

“Thank you. Then I’ll gratefully accept it!”

Thus, each of their rewards was decided.

The three opened their chests without hesitation.

*Creak!*

As if proving how old they were, the chests opened with a loud creak.

Upon seeing the contents,

Ivella’s eyes widened.

“A longsword?”

A sword sheathed in a black scabbard.

At first glance, it looked like an ordinary longsword.

*Swoosh!*

The blade was surprisingly intact.

Despite being left for so long, it looked as good as new.

“Not bad.”

She swung the sword a few times to test it, and it felt perfect in her hand.

A satisfied smile spread across her face.

It was a good reward. Ivella had never owned her own sword before. Then, Silfi’s voice came.

“Um, I got a ring.”

A purple ring, matching the chest.

Silfi, who had put the ring on her right middle finger, murmured with a curious expression.

“It fits perfectly. It’s really amazing.”

As she said,

It was as if the ring had always been hers.

Now only Ulan remained. Ivella asked with curiosity in her eyes.

“What did you get, Ulan?”

“Nothing.”

“…What?”

Ivella asked, visibly flustered.

But it was true. Ulan’s chest was empty. He searched every corner, but there was still nothing to be seen.

Thinking he hadn’t received a reward,

Silfi hurriedly took off her ring.

“T-then, would you like this ring?”

“No need. That’s your reward.”

Ulan shook his head.

It probably wouldn’t fit his finger anyway. So he answered indifferently.

“I don’t need a reward. The fact that we all made it back safely is the greatest reward.”

He meant it.

Ivella was a future comrade, and Silfi was a friend he had just met. So Ulan turned without hesitation.

“Let’s go. If we keep going, we’ll surely…”

Find an exit leading outside.

Just as he was about to say that,

Suddenly, Ivella’s voice stopped him.

“Wait, Ulan.”

“Hmm?”

“Did you always have that tattoo on your back?”

“Tattoo?”

“Yeah, a tattoo this big?”

Ivella held up both her palms together.

As if indicating the size.

Meanwhile, Ulan looked puzzled. He had never gotten a tattoo.

Then Silfi chimed in.

“Maybe that’s the reward?!”

“A tattoo as a reward?”

“Yes! I’ve read about something similar in a book.”

Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.

A scholar’s inquisitive gaze.

“This looks like the ‘Enchantment’ that only the Great Warriors of the ancient Desert Kingdom could receive.”

“An Enchantment…”

“A magical symbol imbued with sorcery. Has anything changed compared to before?”

Anything changed?

He moved his body, but nothing felt different.

If anything, he felt less fatigued. But that was probably due to absorbing the Golem’s energy source.

So Ulan shook his head.

“Nothing’s changed.”

“No, there is.”

But then, a firm denial came.

Ivella’s voice.

She stepped closer and poked his back with her finger.

“Your trapezius muscles are bigger than before. Not just that, but your deltoids and triceps too…”

“How do you know that?”

“Because I’m interested.”

Ivella reflexively answered.

A moment later, she realized how strange that sounded and quickly corrected herself.

“Ah, no! I mean, I’m interested in muscles! Ulan’s muscles!”

Her face turned bright red.

Meanwhile, Ulan still looked puzzled.

Why would someone be interested in another person’s muscles? He was about to ask but decided against it.

Somehow, he felt that Ivella’s red face might explode like a balloon.

“So, I guess I did get a reward after all.”

He wasn’t sure what the exact effect was.

But there was no need to worry. Ulan had a capable sorceress by his side.

‘I’ll ask Noa.’

She would probably know the true nature of this Enchantment. With that thought, the party walked toward the passage where the wind was blowing.

Finally, after exiting the passage,

A familiar landscape unfolded before them.

“T-this place is…!”

“The Source of Magic! We’re finally out!”

Ivella and Silfi’s faces brightened.

Moreover, they could see people in the distance. Presumably, a rescue team.

Not long after,

After being swept away by the waves and spending a full eleven hours,

Ulan’s party had successfully escaped.

5.

With Ulan’s party’s safe return,

The sudden disappearance of the Source of Magic was concluded without further incident.

Of course, the three who had gone missing had to appear before the inspection team and give a detailed account of what had happened at the Source of Magic.

After finishing all their statements,

By the time they left the inspection team’s headquarters, the sun was already setting.

“Ugh, I’m so sleepy I could die.”

“I just want to sleep too.”

Silfi and Ivella’s eyes were hollow.

It was understandable.

Just breaking through the trial was exhausting, and giving statements had drained their stamina.

But there was good news too.

There were no lectures for the next three days, until Monday. So the two girls planned to collapse as soon as they got back to the dormitory.

As they approached the dormitory,

A familiar face appeared.

“Noa.”