Chapter 149: An Unexpected Magic Sword
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 149: An Unexpected Magic Sword
[ Dainsleif - The Legacy of the Magic Sword Dain recognizes you as its master. ]
[ Quest Complete ]
[ Quest - Steal Weapons: You are a Named Monster known to humans as Blood Dagger, or the Weapon Merchant. It wouldn't be strange for you to become a 'Weapon Thief' now, would it? Steal as many weapons as you can. (1/1) ]
[ As a quest completion reward, you will rank up. You will change to the special class, Weapon Specialist. The Weapon Specialist is a direct upgrade to the Gladiator class and inherits all the abilities of an Intermediate Gladiator. ]
[ As a quest completion reward, Special Reinforcement is now unlocked in the Item Shop. ]
It had been a quest with no clear criteria, but stealing Dainsleif right after the Reaper's Scythe seemed to have done the trick. It looked like I still hadn't met the conditions to evolve into a higher species, but I had been feeling the limits of an Intermediate Gladiator, so a class change wasn't bad at all.
I hadn't read the description for Weapon Specialist yet, but it was obviously a perfect upgrade from Gladiator. The single pauldron that had been a symbol of the Gladiator class was gone, replaced by a set of lighter armor. The thought of gaining new abilities on top of inheriting all the old ones was enough to put me in a good mood. Not only that, but I was also looking forward to the Special Reinforcement in the Item Shop. In every way, it was a massive windfall.
I gripped Dainsleif tightly in my hand. I wasn't sure if he thought any old item from the shop would be enough to establish mastery, but considering the value of a weapon like Dainsleif, the guy was probably broke now.
Even for the heir of a metropolis, there had to be a limit to his points. It made no sense for him to keep buying items like this. Despite that, I felt a strange sense of disappointment, and my feet felt heavy.
‘What a sucker.’
A truly perfect sucker. As if gifting me the Reaper's Scythe wasn't enough, he had now placed a magic sword in my hands. I looked at him expectantly, wondering what weapon he might buy next, but it seemed he was out of points. Instead of a weapon, all I saw was his incredibly agitated face.
His face was flushed red, like a character in a cartoon. The man, who seemed more hot-headed than I’d expected, was empty-handed, smacking the archers beside him as he screamed his lungs out.
“Aaaaargh! Get him! That bastard! Catch him right now and kill him!”
As I’d predicted, he seemed to have poured almost all his points into that last purchase. The only sound was the shriek of a man on the verge of insanity.
I couldn't understand it. Did he think I wouldn't be able to take this weapon from him, or did he just assume I would keep running away?
“Aaaaaaaaaargh!”
In the end, he began to unleash his magic toward me indiscriminately, with no form or technique. He must have consumed a lot of good stuff. The sheer force of his mana was, frankly, superior to mine. In fact, I had never seen mana of such depth and concentration anywhere else.
But the archers were a greater threat than him. Even riding Abar, dodging their arrows was slowing us down. The swordsmen who were confident in their agility saw the opening and were rapidly closing in. I could get away, but it was a huge pain. If I let them keep me in their sights like this, it wouldn't be long before they were on my trail.
I couldn't risk exposing the location of our settlement in the Brother's Land.
Just then, a welcome voice reached me.
[ If you're in a difficult spot, I will guide you to a place where you can hide. I've already made arrangements, so they won't be surprised. ]
[ Understood. ]
The fact that she had secured an escape route was enough to remind me once again that she was a pretty decent partner. A hiding place would most likely be a location that required a high level of security. The fact that she trusted me that much was bound to make me feel good.
I swung the scythe once more at the approaching swordsmen. A few were caught in the space-rending slash and were instantly taken out of the fight. But the number of those who dodged was overwhelming.
As I thought, using weapons like these carried a significant risk. I swung the Reaper's Scythe, but its output wasn't what it was at first. As Abar and I raced on, I began to spin the scythe slightly to deflect the arrows flying at my back.
It was a surprisingly compatible weapon. I didn't know if it was the influence of the Weapon Specialist class, but it felt like the scythe quite liked me.
Just then, another volley of arrows rained down from a completely different direction. It seemed the other group had finally heard the commotion and joined the chase. The loudmouthed sucker was also pouring mana into his feet, somehow managing to keep up with Abar.
If this were open plains and they had cavalry, things might be different. But this was a swamp, and Abar would never be caught.
It was at that moment, as I ducked down and patted Abar's flank, that she began to grow slightly larger. To be precise, it wasn't that she was getting bigger, but that her very skeleton was changing. The same was true for her muscles; they weren't expanding, but compressing. Her legs grew just a little longer.
‘Evolution.’
While I had gained a new class, Abar was evolving once again through this experience. Her size was about the same as before, but her entire body felt distinctly sleeker.
“Krrrrrrng.”
Her body seemed to have transformed for the sole purpose of running. Of course, she wasn't skinny or shabby. Even from her back, I could feel just how densely packed her muscles had become.
“Ha!”
A cry escaped my lips without me realizing it, and Abar began to surge forward. Her speed before had been fast, but a body built purely for running was on a completely different level. I had to grip her fur even tighter just to keep from being thrown off. Even as we ran, the telepathic message continued.
[ Head north from the Dungeon of the Weapon Thief. A guide I sent will meet you before you enter the Northern Forest. ]
[ Understood. ]
It seemed the secret hideout was on the border between the East and the North. She was quite thorough. Since I had been heading in a slightly different direction, I decided to make a wide circle and loop back around. It wasn't part of the plan, but now, it was possible.
The humans seemed to have roughly read my intentions and were spreading out to pressure me, but the evolved Abar was fast. Definitely faster than before. Her combat strength didn't seem to have diminished much, so this level of speed was astonishing even to me. The sight of her shaking off even the high-agility advanced swordsmen was incredible.
They were still firing arrows, but Abar weaved from side to side as she ran, and none of them could touch her. On the rare occasion an arrow got close, I immediately drew the scythe and batted it away.
[ You're getting away okay, right...? ]
Her voice was tinged with a bit of worry. She must have grown anxious during the long silence. It seemed she was uneasy and disliked this situation where all she could do was watch.
But…
Abar's unexpected evolution had given me more breathing room. Escaping their encirclement felt much faster than I had anticipated. In other words, the countermeasures they had prepared based on their previous information had been completely shattered. They could never have imagined that the wolf I was riding would evolve.
[ I'm fine. Don't worry, there's no problem. ]
I wouldn't head straight for the hideout. Abar was certainly fast at full speed, but she would inevitably leave tracks everywhere. I had to run in a confusing pattern to hide our true destination as much as possible.
“Get him!!!”
‘Idiot.’
I dodged an incoming arrow. The key was to utilize the entire forest in front of Hadum. I had no intention of using this wide terrain narrowly. Abar, who continued to gain momentum as she ran, was as fast as a gale.
The wind slammed against my face so hard that I had to duck down when arrows weren't flying. There seemed to be a plant magician similar to Jung Hayeon who tried to entangle us with roots, but there was no way they could reach us. Slow-moving fire magic didn't even come close.
I deflected every tracking arrow and javelin. And then it happened.
“...............!”
KRRRRRUMBLE!
A massive wall of earth suddenly rose up from above. A mage even more powerful than Jung Hayeon must have prepared and executed the spell. It was high and wide, as if they had poured every last bit of their mana into it. The left, the right, every direction was blocked. But it was possible. It had to be.
“Abar!”
“Krrrrrng.”
At my command, Abar began to gain momentum and charged forward. Her charge was so fierce it looked as if she would smash right through the wall. She shot forward like a bullet. The moment Abar leaped and hit the wall, the giant wolf, incredibly, began to run up its vertical surface. In an instant, Abar was scaling the wall. Amazingly, her speed didn't change at all.
When we reached the very top of the wall, what I saw was the vast expanse of the East.
I felt like I was on an amusement park ride.
“No way...”
“Dammit...”
Someone's voice drifted up from below. Even I had to admit it was an absurd scene. It wasn't particularly surprising to see a skilled assassin or swordsman run up a wall, but this wall was incredibly high. The sight of a wolf running up it on all fours was surely surreal. In the end, the massive wall they had created to stop me had only served to trap themselves.
Even if they cut off the mana, it would take quite some time for the wall to crumble, so I took the opportunity to grab a few more useful-looking items from the people on the wall.
“Krrrrrng.”
Sensing my good mood, the evolved Abar let out a joyful laugh.
Eventually, we leaped down and ran, and it wasn't long before our pursuers were completely out of sight.
“You son of a bitch!”
“Fucking bastard!!!”
Meaningless curses struck my ears, but I paid them no mind. I was confident that they couldn't catch me now that they had to go around the massive wall they had just created. A few humans had managed to climb to the top, but only a handful. I figured it would be too much for them to follow me on their own.
[ I've lost most of them. ]
[ Good work. They'll probably be searching that area intensively, so it would be best to erase your tracks as much as possible before moving. ]
[ Understood. Your brother is even more of an idiot than I thought. ]
[ He's an empty-headed fool. I'm glad we see eye-to-eye on that. ]
I smiled slightly at Jang Ye Ri's frankness. After wandering around aimlessly for a while, we found a suitable spot and began to move while erasing our tracks. It seemed the evolution had also affected Abar's ability to move stealthily, because she was truly amazing, leaving almost no trace behind. Eventually, we completely escaped their encirclement and were able to head toward Jang Ye Ri's hideout.
After walking for a good while longer, the weather began to grow colder. Following Jang Ye Ri's continuous directions, I eventually spotted a single doll.
And waiting for me there was... the unexpected Park Han Cheol.