Chapter 95
Chapter 95
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 95
Chapter Title: Chapter 19: Interest Should Compound (5)
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"Still sleeping, huh..."
I could see the guy dozing off in the guest room.
"Kuuu..."
Looking down at Breche, who was sprawled out on the bed snoring away, I soon shook my head and turned around.
'Just head out.'
The main goal of today's outing was hunting.
Building rapport with Breche along the way would be nice, but it wasn't essential.
Forming bonds and connections with other races was a secondary objective anyway.
'It's not like I need someone to help me hunt, right?'
I'd managed just fine on my own so far.
Besides, judging by how long he was sleeping, he must have been exhausted.
There's no rush to collect payment for the catnip today, and going alone wouldn't be any issue.
'I'll go on ahead.'
His sense of smell seemed more developed than a human's, so he should be able to track me down.
Even if he wakes up and doesn't bother chasing after me, it wouldn't be a problem.
Having sorted out my thoughts, I left a brief message with the servant who had shown me to Breche's room.
"If he asks for me, tell him I headed to the Ramolt Mountains."
"Yes, K-nim."
That took care of letting him know the destination. I left the mansion right away.
Before long, I arrived at the entrance to the Ramolt Mountains—a place so familiar now that I could find my way blindfolded.
There were quite a few purified zones, so I had to venture deeper than before.
I'd only just settled in and started hunting when I shook out my spear with a flourish and stopped in my tracks.
A moment later, I opened my status window.
My current mana sat in the mid-30,000s.
Hunting for four or five hours and purifying a single contaminated zone netted me around 2,000 to 3,000 mana.
'Looks like I won't break 40,000 today either.'
Some of my mana got deducted as points credited to the church, so there wasn't much I could do about it.
I stared at the numbers on my status window for a bit before shifting my gaze to the map.
'That direction should have a 2-star contaminated zone, right?'
Lately, hunting in 1-star zones had started feeling like repetitive grunt work.
Battles there no longer seemed dangerous.
'Only one evolved species there, too.'
After mulling it over, I finally stepped off in an unfamiliar direction.
I wanted to check how much mana a 2-star zone would yield compared to the time invested.
Since this was primarily reconnaissance, I stuck to safe travel via the barrier in the skies.
"Hmm..."
Rashar had already explained how contaminated zones were classified.
'The number of Mesheo, the scale of mana concentrated in them, and the number of evolved species.'
A 2-star contaminated zone—equivalent to the old level 4—had three to five Mesheo.
But it had even more evolved species.
'Already nine of them...'
Since entering this 2-star contaminated zone, I'd only found four Mesheo.
Yet there were nine evolved species prowling around, devouring small monsters.
Those things with two black stars on their heads were definitely 2-star evolved species.
And that was excluding the ones right next to the Mesheo—if I included those, the number was even higher.
The mana emanating from these prowling evolved species felt around 1,000 each.
Similar in scale to Han Chang-sik's mana from back then.
'Maybe there's a growth cap.'
At that point, it seemed like they couldn't absorb any more.
'Or else, there's no reason for the ones hogging the Mesheo to wander out here.'
It meant that starting from 2-star zones, you'd run into evolved species patrolling the field.
'Basically, the higher the contamination level, the older the Mesheo that's formed.'
The evolved species needed time to absorb mana up to their limit.
'And the holes attached to the Mesheo seem bigger, too.'
I focused on the mana of a Mesheo just barely within my mana detection range.
It definitely had more mana concentrated than the ones in 1-star zones.
Chewing over the info I'd confirmed with my own eyes, I checked my mission list.
A deep sigh escaped from the depths of my subconscious.
I had no clue how many evolved species might be swarming a higher-level contaminated zone.
"What's the point of overthinking it..."
Better to just take down the ones right in front of me.
I shook off the useless thoughts and got to my feet.
Beneath the red-tinted translucent barrier about 20 cm in diameter, I could see an evolved species.
I sized up the scale of the contaminated zone and did some calculations.
'At this size, clearing it in a single day won't be easy.'
But leaving after half-assing a few wouldn't sit right with me.
'Might as well clear it out properly since I'm here.'
I already had camping experience, and I could just let Rashar know I'd be out overnight.
For breaks, I could buy a barrier stone and rest briefly.
'The sooner I finish, the more I save on costs.'
Buying too many barrier stones would rack up expenses.
'I need to wrap it up in two nights, three at the latest.'
With my calculations done, I leaped down toward the evolved species that had been sniffing around my feet.
* * *
Three days of pure hunting focus.
A message popped up announcing my first 2-star contaminated zone clear.
I'd destroyed all four Mesheo and killed 14 evolved species.
Breche had joined midway and helped a bit, which sped things up.
After a total of two nights and three days, the pure mana I'd earned exceeded 30,000.
But my actual mana gain was under 20,000.
I'd bought potions and rations, plus multiple magic stones to save time.
'It ended quicker thanks to the investment, at least.'
If things went south, it wouldn't be dozens but hundreds swarming me, so I had no choice but to buy offensive magic stones.
Still, efficiency-wise, 2-star was better than sticking to 1-star.
I used the shop a lot, but my earnings scaled up accordingly.
'I should set aside days for this from now on.'
With just barrier stones, I could take 3-4 hour breaks and sustain long hunts.
'Time to head back for now.'
Satisfied with the solid results, I dragged my weary body back to Havon.
My footsteps felt heavy as I trudged along the city streets toward the mansion.
I wanted nothing more than to return, soak in a hot bath, and crash.
But it looked like that sweet rest would have to wait.
Mana detection had picked up over a dozen mana signatures.
Not just along the path I'd taken, but scattered through alleys in my direction.
They weren't illusions—they were circling around me.
'This feels familiar somehow.'
Only one way to confirm if this déjà vu was real.
Without a second thought, I changed direction.
Sure enough, a good number of presences followed.
'As expected, they're closing the net right away.'
It was clear they were after me.
And just as clear they weren't amateur thugs.
'Someone from another church?'
They'd gone quiet after I officially refused their visit.
Now they were seizing the chance while I was out?
'This blatantly?'
Impressive as my title's effect was, these were groups serving gods.
Moving so openly?
'That's just plain stupid...'
With the church homepage feature, failure was likely.
Players could interact with church staff in real-time.
'Then it must be someone who doesn't know about the homepage function.'
In the brief moment I narrowed down suspects for these unfamiliar presences, I'd moved away from the main road.
Soon, I entered a muddy alley without even pavement.
The figures blocking every direction made further progress impossible.
Watching the unfamiliar faces, the number caught by mana detection matched what I could see.
Simple implication.
'No cores for now.'
I'd asked Ahel before leaving the mansion.
Who were these people mana detection missed?
That's when I learned it was tied to mana cores.
—Detection magic estimates total scale by sensing emitted mana wavelengths.
Just storing your naturally leaking mana in a core lets you evade detection spells.
According to Ahel, erasing mana afterimages worked the same way.
So if they couldn't dodge mana detection, it meant none of them had cores—they weren't the skilled types.
'And the mana I'm sensing from them is weak.'
The kind you'd expect from ordinary humans.
"Ahem. Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise."
We held a brief standoff, sizing each other up, when one of the thugs stepped forward.
A man in his early-to-mid thirties with three long scars across one side of his face.
Obviously the leader of this crew.
Feeling no need to respond, I just scanned him up and down.
He scowled, spat on the ground, and said,
"You're a stoic one, aren'tcha?"
The scarred man glanced around, then drew the sword from his belt.
"Kids, even if he resists, go easy."
His next words dropped unexpected info.
"His bounty is a whopping 1,000 Her."
That single short phrase rang in my ears.
'Bounty.'
The implication was crystal clear.
'A kidnapping attempt.'
Someone targeting me had hired these kidnappers.
"What're you waiting for? Grab him."
While I pieced it together, the scarred man barked, and the thugs closed in.
With my current strength, handling a dozen or so ordinary folks without mana control wasn't hard.
'Humans are weaker than the monsters I was just fighting.'
But I didn't let my guard down. The scarred man was far too confident.
'They've got an ace up their sleeve?'
Better safe than sorry.
'Winning without risk is always preferable.'
The space was tight, so spears would be awkward.
I drew a pair of daggers and assumed a combat stance.
'I need to dig into their backers anyway.'
To find out who was after me, I'd have to clash with them directly.
I had my suspicions, but info was too scarce right now.
'All I know is they've got deep pockets.'
1,000 Her meant 1,000 platinum coins.
This world's currency: coppers, silvers, golds, platinums.
'From the prices I've gauged, 1,000 Her is about 100 million in city value.'
Spending that much to nab me meant serious capital.
To learn more, I'd have to engage firsthand.
With that settled, I lunged through their encirclement, swinging my daggers.
Each swing drew blood without fail—the skill gap was massive.
They couldn't handle my mana-enhanced movements.
Witnessing the stark difference, doubts crept in.
'Not the church, then.'
If it were them, they'd have sent holy knights, right?
I'd have been captured without a fight.
"What, this weak?"
Their skills were so underwhelming I muttered it aloud in disbelief.
The thugs were pathetically inept, leaving me confused.
And why had they been so cocky with this level of skill? It was deflating.
I focused on neutralizing them non-lethally.
They weren't threatening enough to kill, and I had no desire to murder.
Unintentionally, I ended up toying with them a bit.
As I disabled them with a complicated mix of emotions, my shoulder twitched suddenly.
"Let's see how long that leisure lasts!"
The scarred man yelled from the back just as mana stirred from the side.
Since my mana detection leveled up, I'd occasionally felt this subtle scraping sensation.
Mostly when Ahel demonstrated spells.
In other words, the telltale sign of someone else activating magic.
I kicked the nearest thug away as black smoke poured toward me.
To evade, I stepped on a fallen thug's shoulder and leaped high.
The smoke meant for me scattered harmlessly over the thugs instead.
'New magic I've never seen.'
What attribute was that spell?
Frowning in curiosity, the one who'd absorbed the black smoke began sobbing, tears streaming down.
'What the hell are they experiencing?'
Intrigued by the effect, but no time to analyze now.
Ignoring the slumped bodies, I turned to the scarred man.
He was rummaging through a leather pouch on his belt with a fierce scowl—clearly more tricks up his sleeve.
Maybe another magic stone, so I decided to interrupt before he acted.