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Chapter 36 Hopefully, This Will Be The Last Time We Meet
Chapter 36 Hopefully, This Will Be The Last Time We Meet
??You have slain Orc, 3-star Master?
A black gash ran across the Orc's torso. As it died, the vines restricting its movement loosened and the corpse fell. Thereafter, the treants blended back into the surroundings.
I ignored the corpse and frowned inwardly while looking at my blade. 'Why can't I create a new skill? Am I doing something wrong?'
Disregarding the previous failures, I again tried to execute the synchronized skill.
<Bending Blade>
The blade of the sword lengthened to 7 meters and its thickness decreased rapidly. My arms swelled and I used <Holy Slash>.
Black threads of mana weaved into the 7-meter-long blade. As the blade continued to descend, a black mana arc shot out. It wasn't 5 meters wide like it was supposed to be but instead 7 meters large, similar to the length of the extended blade.
However, the 7-meter arc of mana shrank after crossing a few meters and returned to its usual size of 5 meters.
I sighed briefly and shook my head. 'It would've been good if I could tweak the <Holy Slash> by creating a synchronized skill, but this is going to take some time.'
Synchronized skills are techniques created by combining two or more skills and using them simultaneously. These skills are more efficient and powerful than normal skills.
My <Bending Phantom Slash> was a Synchronized skill that combined <Phantom Slash> and <Bending Blade>.
???d? n??a| ?om 'Let's get to work. Heave ho!' Using <Body strengthening> I lifted the corpse and carried it to another location. At the same time, I used <Mana Sense> every now and then to scout my surroundings.
—
<Body Strengthening>
<Level: 8>
<Cost: 13 Magic Power per second>
<Description: Increases your Physique stat by 45 points>
–
<Mana Sense>
<Level: 6>
<Cost: 45 Magic Power per second>
<Description: Allows you to sense your surroundings within a 60-meter radius of you. Works in all directions.>
—
The MP cost of skills was rising steadily with their levels. But it wasn't a problem with my mana reserves.
After reaching my destination, I dumped the corpse alongside the other corpses of Orcs and Great Apes. They numbered a bit over 10 in total.
Turning around, I faced Orca and spoke authoritatively. "Orca, explain the situation you learned after going inside."
The scrawny Orc nodded with a grim expression. "All five big tribes – Orc tribe, Great Ape Tribe, Beetle tribe, Minautour tribe, Mountain Leopard tribe – are in uproar. Every heavenly warrior who had been sent to the holy lake had gone missing and there is no news about them, this includes the warriors from the smaller tribes who went there for baptism."
I nodded while listening to him intently.
'Heavenly warrior' was the term these monsters used for ascended rank monsters. 'Holy lake' was for Lake of Purity, and 'baptism' meant using the lake. While the word 'warrior' referred to Mortal Awakening rank monsters.
Since I eliminated all monsters who were sent to Lake of Purity along with Ascended rank monsters following them to assess the situation, the five big tribes were now busy formulating their next course of action.
The situation had reached a point where no monsters were sent for baptism today. But this extreme decision from the side of large tribes wasn't solely due to my actions of eliminating the monsters sent for baptism.
Orca continued. "The annihilation of the… monster tribes is also being treated as a grave matter. With the warriors leaving for the holy lake going missing, and the destruction of the villages, the large tribes have been hit from both inside and outside."
Not all small and medium-sized monster tribes were under the large tribes. But the ones I hit belonged to a large monster tribe. It was to force them to take action.
"Everyone is aware that an enemy is attacking both sides of the forest. However, we can't find them. The villages from small to large are on the lookout for any clues pointing to the outsider, but haven't found anything. Many elders believe that the outsider is using our paths to hunt us.
All large tribes have come to a decision. They will create an elite group made of solely heavenly warriors and scour the forest with it."
"Anything else?" I questioned Orca while using <Reader> on him. He shook his head in denial. 'This guy is interesting.'
Orca was an Orc with a weak physical constitution. He had been evicted from his tribe due to his evident weakness. Later, he was taken in by a Great Ape as a servant.
Great Ape Tribe and Orc Tribe are especially violent against each other, even among the large tribes. The great ape who sheltered Orca treated him poorly and used him to insult Orcs in their face by calling Orcs an inferior race who produced defects like him.
The results of <Reader> on Orca were amusing. 'He grieves for the monsters that died to me. Despite the treatment he received he thinks of other monsters as his brethren and cares for them. Yet, he isn't angry at me nor does he want to harm me.'
"C-can you… can you do it?" Orca continued hesitatingly. "The Orc tribe has innumerable heavenly warriors. They are unlike the villages you've attacked… Is it possible for you to win?"
Orca's concerns weren't unfounded. To kill one Orc I needed to use at least 2 Jet Dragonflies. Hound Wolves had great agility but they weren't suited for direct combat.
Spooky Treant had high strength with good combat skills, but they weren't without weakness. They couldn't move from their initial location. If I needed to transport them, it would require the use of the summoner card. However, that would be a needless waste of MP. In a sense, Spooky Treants were very weak.
"It is a three-front attack." I rechecked my supplies before I began my last job in the forest. "I cannot lose."
Two swords, check. Crown, check. Recognition inhibition robe, check. Healing bandages used, check. Black pouch that has my trump card for clearing the Port, check.
Lastly, I held the smelly firecrackers and hurled them into the sky with <Throw>. Then, I used Odour Neutralizer.
—
<Throw>
<Level: 7>
<Cost: 14 Magic Power per throw>
<Description: By using body strengthening partially on your arms, you can increase the throw damage by 11%.>
–
<Odour Neutralizer>
Grade: High-Common
Quantity: 1
Description: Using this removes all types of odors struck to the body. It is recommended to use this item before using perfumes for the best effect. The item might inhibit the user's sense of smell for a short duration. To use this item, pop the Odour Neutralizer capsule over your head.
—
An extremely bright explosion took place in the night sky. The Orc sentries at the tribe perimeter gasped and moved hastily.
"You don't need to work for me anymore."
I bid farewell to the feeble yet kind Orc and ran toward the perimeter of the village. "Hopefully, this will be the last time we meet."