Chapter 433
Chapter 433
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 433
Chapter Title: Water Spirit Undine
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After packing up everything worth taking, I headed to the spring and washed Matelis's head once. Since I was bringing it back to the city, it was best to get rid of the bloodstains.
It had to be clean for proper identification anyway.
Swish, swish.
I rinsed off the blood, dried it, and wrapped it back up in the cloak. A cloak was basically an all-purpose rag you slung over your back, right? Disposable, so no big deal if it got ruined.
—Matelis's head.
It was a human head, but in the end, it was no different from collecting a monster's head for a quest.
This psycho had already given up on being human.
In this world, you didn't get human rights just for being human. No one handed out protection either. You had to carve out and defend those rights yourself. When there weren't enough people on your side, siding with monsters was beyond the pale.
Humans could kill monsters, but monsters couldn't kill humans. That wasn't unfair—it was perfectly rational. Our kind was human, not monster.
Anyway, I did a quick tally of the rewards.
Quest completion: 20 silver. Plus six mid-grade spirit cores. Add in the bounty, and it came to roughly 60 silver.
Three of us split it three ways: 20 silver each.
Not a bad haul at all.
I couldn't put a price on the weird statue I'd looted yet since I didn't know what it was. Still, 60 silver was a fortune. My mood lifted instantly, heart pounding with excitement.
Doing good really did bring good fortune.
"But isn't the bounty kinda low for something the army chased?"
"Hm, yeah. Whatever."
15 silver bounty felt stingy. When I pointed it out, Winia brushed it off casually. Not a big deal anyway. Bounties were whatever the issuer felt like.
Still, it was low for the risk.
For a quest, it'd need at least 30 silver to form a party.
—Salrist.
—Towerr.
—Nyas.
—Silidra.
—Latras.
Controlling five mid-grade spirits of different elements at once wasn't something to scoff at. Extremely dangerous. Most folks couldn't take down even one—five together was a disaster.
But against a master swordsman at the peak of his skill, a capable mage, and Claudy? They dropped like flies.
Well, they were eco-terrorists, not seasoned warriors.
Raw power didn't mean you fought well or killed efficiently. Combat sense and judgment were what mattered.
All told, the threat level exceeded a C-rank quest. No wonder the army got involved.
Dangerous bastard, but he got unlucky.
Against average foes, he'd have overwhelmed them with spirits.
Might've even hit the village afterward. He claimed he came for Undine, but I never bought that. I'd glimpsed his ideology.
There was only one way for spirits and humans to coexist.
Exterminate one side and coexist with the corpses. Both sides wanted exactly that.
"Heh heh heh. Mid-grade spirits are a joke now."
A mid-grade lightning spirit?
Latras, he called it. Killing it was a breeze. Fast, sure, but not faster than my blade.
My skills clearly outclassed mid-grade spirits.
Stronger than when I fought Nyas. Back then, I'd barely scraped by with some ass-puckering antics.
"Latras is pretty tough as spirits go. Good job, blackie."
"Such smooth growth. Mama's proud. Upper-grade spirits aren't far off."
"They're all chump change to me."
I'd wanted to test if normal slashes worked without poison, but no dice.
"More importantly, Winia. What was that Flame Arrow on Salrist? Caught me off guard."
Never expected Salrist to confidently charge in and end up as a core in my pocket. Weren't fire spirits immune to fire?
"You think I couldn't handle that? I told you, I've taken down a Salrist before."
Winia puffed out her chest proudly.
"Blackie, it's not just my tits that are big. You think some pipsqueak spirit out-magics me?"
"Hell no!"
Even fire bows to greater fire. A match can't beat a flamethrower. And Winia's Flame Arrow was a heavy hitter.
With that, we headed down to the village.
And so, the demonic spirit summoner's heartless crimes—commanding a freakish band of otherworldly fiends—came to an end here.
Lately, everywhere I went, I was spreading peace to the world.
Even the original goal, Undine, fell cleanly. Who knew it'd wrap up so quick? Hours after arriving, everything done.
"Still, that guy was totally unhinged. Everything out of his mouth was pure bullshit. What a nutjob."
"You think so too, huh?"
Even Winia, born and bred in this world, was appalled by Matelis's ideology. Well, Earth was full of morons too—no reason this world should be different.
Nothing strange about it.
"But we scored some great loot thanks to him. Confirmed your growth too, Katt."
"Heh heh heh, yeah."
Just my take, but thanks to that spirit summoner, I got to rethink monsters—and irreconcilable foes—once more. Man-killers with no path to coexistence.
Maybe Matelis appeared just to teach me that.
The thought warmed my heart.
Your sacrifice won't be forgotten, Matelis.
We reached the village soon after. The chief greeted us with a shocked look.
"Y-You already got Undine?"
"Yep. Took it down clean."
I showed him Undine's core. He gawked at it, but a village chief wouldn't know spirit cores on sight.
"This... proof Undine's dead?"
"Spirits leave these when they die. Hm, makes sense you'd not know. Better to check the spring together. Gather some folks and follow."
An adventurer's job included proving total elimination to the client. Heads sufficed for other monsters, but not spirits.
"Got it. Wait a sec."
Plenty of time till tomorrow, so showing before dark was smart.
Pros didn't leave loose ends.
"Claudy, Winia. Rest here. I'll show 'em and be back."
"Sure."
"Do good, blackie."
I took the chief and three militiamen as witnesses up to the spring. Despite saying we'd killed it, they looked terrified.
Made sense—three locals dead.
Every village had a militia, but they weren't pros. They defended, kept order, and waited for real fighters.
"Heh heh heh, no worries. Undine's toast. Adventurers like us specialize in monsters. Knew the spot, so quick work."
I flashed a grin, and they finally relaxed.
"Money doesn't betray trust. You paid the guild dozens of silver—that means the problem's solved. No matter what."
"R-Right?"
A young guy replied. Mid-teens, middle schooler back home—but adult here.
Old enough for militia.
"How long you been adventuring, sir?"
"Few years. Thinking of trying it? Don't recommend. Farming's less stress."
"Hm... I see."
Few farmers quit for adventuring. Unless famine wrecked crops, most lived better than low-rank adventurers.
Adventurers were like technicians.
I had skills, gear, big bucks now. Others? Not so much.
Fighting bare-handed sucked.
Had to hit D-rank for real money—below that, just grunt labor like early me.
"Better stick to farming and militia. Anyway, here's the spring."
"Look for Bauer's body, folks."
At the spring, the chief and militia cautiously searched. I stood guard, letting them verify to their satisfaction.
"Undine's definitely gone... But just in case—what if it comes back?"
After thirty minutes of thorough checks, the chief handed me the quest form, stamped and ready.
"No sweat. Talk to the guild if needed. They run on trust. I eat via guild quests—no lying about completions."
"...Wasn't doubting. Thanks."
Perfectly reasonable to doubt.
"Paid work—no thanks needed. Next time, control villagers faster to limit damage."
"Will do."
"Getting late—might stay the night. Got an inn?"
"No inn. Empty warehouse you can use."
"Appreciate it."
Quest closed out nicely. Another success. Satisfaction and refreshment washed over me. This was how you built rep and wealth.
Headed back to the village with them.
"What'd they say, blackie?"
"Got the form. Warehouse to crash in."
Winia grinned, pleased, clutching the paper.
"Blackie's so damn strong—worth dragging around. Aw, my handsome man. C'mere. You're rock solid."
"No one's steadier than me."
Glad she was happy.
We moved to the warehouse, unpacked. Well nearby—wash up, rest, head out at dawn.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Katt, we're here."
"Ungh?"
I remembered boarding the cart at dawn and nodding off. Woke to Isvant. Claudy was fiddling with my ear. Around noon.
Straight to the guild.
A few errands today—better hustle.
Ask about the bounty at the counter.
"Quest complete."
"Hm... C-rank Winia, D-rank Katt, E-rank Claudy... Eclectic party? Here's 20 silver."
Handed over the form, pocketed the coins. Counted as I asked,
"Any wanted posters here?"
"Wanted posters?"
"Saw a face that looked familiar from one. Wanna confirm."
"Hm... Guild keeps some. Upstairs, second floor. Ask for posters—they'll guide you."
Twenty silvers. Spot on.
"Thanks. Good work."
"You too."
Up to the second floor.