Chapter 50
Chapter 50
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Valterus's Holy Water
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Valterus's holy water.
It was the holy water created by the Valterus Church for those who serve the sword.
Typically, when people hear "church holy water," the first thing they think of is a healing potion.
That's because curing incurable diseases among the miracles of the gods easily wins the hearts of the masses.
Thus, it became more widely known as a healing potion, but holy water is originally bestowed by the gods. Its proper use is not limited to healing the body.
The true purpose of holy water is precisely.
"Demon exorcism."
Repelling and purifying things possessed by demonic energy—that is the original use of holy water.
-Groooaaargh! Uuooorg!
And the troll's origin story is tied directly to that demonic energy.
"The bastard child of giants and demons."
Half-human, half-demon.
That is the root of the troll.
Even a tiny amount of holy water in its mouth can inflict excruciating pain.
This is normally a strategy that could only be discovered after gathering various pieces of information, but...
'Since I set it up myself.'
There's no way I wouldn't know.
"Luteon... has lost consciousness."
He let out one final scream and seems to have passed out.
I quietly watched the thrashing troll.
Its cries of agony grew louder, but it still seemed to be enduring.
I wanted to force more holy water down its throat to finish it off, but I only had one vial on hand.
The rest were with Brans.
"Time will take care of it anyway."
Even if left alone, it would die soon.
-Grraaaak!
Suddenly, the troll bolted upright and started fleeing.
At first, it staggered to its feet, vomiting blood and crawling along, then it let out roars as it walked, spewing blood everywhere.
It was probably heading back to its lair.
'Hmm...'
Normally, this would be cause for alarm, but Kallias remained calm.
On the contrary, he thought it wasn't a bad turn of events and slowly followed behind the troll.
He jumped down to deal with Luteon.
The situation had more or less wrapped up, and Luteon was on the brink of death, so now the issue was how to climb back up out of the forest.
Following the troll would likely reveal the way.
-Grro!! Groooaaa!!
Perhaps because it had never experienced the pain of its organs disintegrating before, the troll wept tears and snot as it writhed in torment.
Its deafening screams sent nameless beasts fleeing in panic.
Slow as a turtle, it advanced step by step.
Instinctual fear bred anxiety, naturally guiding it toward the lair where it felt the most secure.
Thanks to the troll rampaging as it fled, the nearby beasts didn't dare approach Kallias.
This allowed him to follow it at ease, and after quite a long walk, they finally arrived.
The troll's lair.
Its den resembled a dragon's lair in scale.
Glowing with numerous luminous stones embedded within, it was noticeably brighter than other places, and one glance made it obvious this was a troll's cave.
With no natural predators, it had been able to live like this.
The cave, carved from rock, was enormous.
Given that the troll stood over seven meters tall, it was only natural.
Inside the cave were all sorts of curiosities scattered about, but what caught my eye most was the pile of junk. All sorts of miscellaneous items had accumulated over a long time, covered in dust.
One of the troll's habits is that they love shiny things and hoard such trifles like treasures.
"This is the place."
Traces of this creature's long, tenacious life were here.
"Before the Sunken Forest was created, this place was..."
Among the junk, I picked up an item engraved with strange patterns.
A ring adorned with wing motifs.
"A relic of the Vira tribe."
Vira.
Due to the terrain, an indigenous tribe had lived here long ago.
Somewhat isolated and independent, they had their own mystical culture and unique gods.
The Forsaken Valley.
Altara's original name was the Valley of Winds.
They were a tribe that enjoyed flying against the fierce winds blowing between cliffs.
Using artifacts from the ancient Leteti tribe—now known as relics of forgotten gods.
An ancient people dwelling thousands of meters below.
The Vira, and the artifact called Leteti, a holy object bestowed by their wing god, was the only way to escape this place.
"But this one's out of power."
It was too old, full of scratches.
It probably couldn't function anymore.
I tossed aside the Leteti and searched a bit more, finding several similar items.
Most were like that.
Still, the Vira tribe had flourished thousands of years ago, so a thorough search might yield many of their relics.
They had developed considerable skill in hunting and combat using flight techniques.
Had it not been for the disaster that struck here, the north today might not belong to Karpe.
"Trolls fleeing from demons came and ruined it, huh. Ah, found it."
Using Triad Vision, I spotted it easily.
I forced open a wooden box glowing gold and found the Leteti inside.
This ring looked of higher quality than the others, and it was well-preserved.
Likely used by a high-ranking Vira.
Kallias slipped the ring onto his finger and circulated divine power.
Injecting divine power into the Leteti consumed an enormous amount in an instant.
Startled for a moment, he added a bit more, and the wing motif on the ring shimmered in vibrant colors.
"Unfurl."
The metal of the ring expanded, forming massive wings of iron and divine power from Kallias's hand.
Grasping the handle from the ring portion, the splendid wings flapped smoothly as if waiting.
Kallias nodded in satisfaction, feeling a strange sense of buoyancy.
"Better than I expected."
He had worried that holding the wing base with one hand might strain his arm strength, but it was unfounded.
The wind felt as if it were cradling his body, providing a comfortable lift.
With this, climbing the cliff shouldn't be too hard.
He cut off the divine power supply and retracted it, and the Leteti returned to its small ring form as if nothing had happened.
It was an artifact so exquisitely crafted it was hard to believe it came from an ancient tribe.
"Normally, someone at my level couldn't hope to obtain this."
It was a treasure beyond Kallias's current means.
Alone, he wouldn't have even considered facing the troll.
Even if he created an opening, he couldn't have wounded it like Luteon did. It was only possible because of the variable named Luteon.
"Now I can breathe easier. The problem was sneaking this out without the troll spotting it, but this makes things simpler."
From the moment he fell here, Kallias had been pondering how to acquire the Leteti.
The trolls of the Forsaken Valley required at least an illusion sword to conquer, as they were half-human, half-demon, while Kallias wielded only a half-formed spirit sword.
The reward was worthwhile, but the risk was high.
If there were multiple trolls, it would get complicated, and survival odds were low, giving him much to worry about.
"The key was always dealing with Luteon."
But things had resolved more easily than expected, which was fortunate.
Luteon was still collapsed in critical condition, and the troll would waste away and die if left alone.
"No matter how great a troll's regeneration is, it can't overcome holy water."
Trolls, bearing the roots of half-human, half-demon, had no defense against the demon-exorcising power of holy water.
Even if it vomited it up immediately, the holy water's property was to absorb into the body instantly, making the troll's death a foregone conclusion.
"There might be better stuff if I hunted other trolls elsewhere..."
Perhaps even something worthy of being called a holy relic, beyond this level of Leteti.
But Kallias shook his head.
Greed invites disaster.
This troll wasn't even fully mature, which was why it was so easy to obtain.
Regrettable, but he'd aim for another chance later.
'This alone is impressive enough.'
Just in case, he searched more, but nothing else turned up.
After so much time, most only sparkled without functioning.
There were swords and bows, but no usable armaments.
While rummaging through the troll's lair, Kallias grabbed a suitable bag and a few ancient-looking pottery pieces.
After gathering a few more items, the quest completion appeared before his eyes.
[Sub Quest]
[Giant Bastard Child Completed]
[Reward given for the first successful troll hunt]
[Reward - Refined Troll Potion]
[Health +4]
"Oh!"
Refined troll potion!
An unexpected reward.
Troll blood contains half demonic energy, so it must be refined before consumption, and they gave it as a reward.
It had been a while since he lost an arm in the fierce battles with Luteon and the troll, covered in bruises everywhere, and he'd used the holy water on the troll—this was exactly what he needed.
Kallias downed the refined troll blood in one gulp.
"Ugh, tastes awful."
Potions were all like that, but troll potion was beyond imagination.
The fishy stench was so intense he might have vomited if his stomach were weaker.
"But the effect is good."
A slight pain and itchiness came as his broken bones realigned.
It spread throughout his body.
Circulating divine power to check his condition, he confirmed the wounds were steadily healing.
Potions were potions, after all.
As unpleasant as it tasted, the effect was certain.
"But 'first successful hunt'... that's odd."
First successful hunt?
There should be plenty of others who hunted trolls besides me.
Some among those who reached master rank have troll-hunting records.
Yet it says first.
'Does it mean first player?'
But that's funny too—if it says that, it implies there are other players besides me.
"Nah."
Probably just a system quirk.
"Stuff like this really makes it feel like a game... but I still don't know how to take it."
Whether this is a real world.
Or a game.
Or something else entirely.
Lost in thought, he had more pressing matters. Passing through a massive tunnel to a chamber suitable for a troll, there it was, curled up on a bed of soft grass.
"Dead."
No breathing.
Blood pooled around it.
Kallias's lips curved into a smile.
Despite inheriting giant blood, it was ultimately one species.
As the term half-human, half-demon suggests, trolls were no different from the demon at Kallias's waist.
Kallias bit his index finger, drawing blood.
With it, he began drawing something on the ground around the fallen troll.
The characters written in blood exuded reverence, infused with his divine power.
"I call upon the god, and the god shall answer with his own sword."
Unlike other pilgrims, Kallias could create carcass swords without performing the proper ritual.
It was also a player's privilege. But today, he decided to perform the formal carcass ritual.
This troll hadn't reached maturity.
Yet turning even such a troll into a carcass sword sparked curiosity about the result.
Whoooosh.
The blood-written scripture glowed silver.
As Kallias's lips moved in invocation, the light intensified.
Divine power's light filled the space, and the troll's flesh crumbled like burning paper. The crumbled flesh turned to swirling ash, reborn as a single sword.
A broadsword base.
A wide-bladed longsword.
Double-edged, its entire body grayish-white like carved bone.
The blades tinged dark red.
A spirit sword forged from the troll.
"Damn it."
Kallias cursed upon inspecting the sword.
He had hoped for at least the cusp of illusion rank, but no such luck.
"Stingy as hell."
[Possession Sword - Grwid]
Grade - Spirit
Indwelling Soul - Troll Grwid
Unique Ability - Possession.
"Hm? Possession?"
However, the unique ability.
That caught his attention.