Chapter 96 - Giant Serpent's Poison Core

There were two items blinking as if urging him to synthesize them right away.

"But come to think of it, something feels off. Isn't the White Tiger usually a wind-attribute spirit beast?"

-Precisely, it's metal attribute among the five elements. Among the four elements, it's often wind.

"Then why is this White Tiger fire-attributed? That's the Vermilion Bird's job. The lore's totally busted."

-......What do you expect from a game? It's all up to the devs' whims.

"Tsk. Those little details are what make a masterpiece. Confiscating its god-game status."

For the record, the confiscation would last until the next 9-star skill or Legendary dropped.

-And real White Tigers are properly lore-accurate, so give back the god-game status.

"Huh? This isn't a real White Tiger?"

-It says young White Tiger. You think they'd burn through prime material like the Four Guardians on a one-off episode?

"Ah."

The Four Guardians—Azure Dragon of the East, White Tiger of the West, Vermilion Bird of the South, Black Tortoise of the North—existed in Last Savior too.

According to Cheonma, they weren't quite at the level of the world's strongest, the Four Calamities, but they were hidden bosses ruling their regions.

-Anyway, they're far-future encounters, so no need to worry now. Enough chit-chat.

Cheonma stared at the inner cores and said,

-You're synthesizing them, right?

"Of course. Proceed with synthesis!"

Carpe placed the two cores in the synthesis window, and a notification popped up as if waiting.

"Ooh. Thinking back, that bonus effect triggered on my first synthesis too."

The word 'bonus' had this magical ring that always got the heart racing.

"Thanks to it, Mukhyang evolved into an Epic pet...... Hope it triggers again?"

-Can't you read? It says low chance. Low! If it hits twice in a row, that's not low probability anymore.

"Gacha game special. Low probs hit sneaky-like."

-......Bad stuff does hit even on low probs, though.

"That's the truth about probability the government's been hiding. Low chance? Nah. Everything's 50/50. Either it happens or it doesn't—pick one!"

-......

Cheonma fell silent, watching Carpe redefine probability theory yet again.

And right then.

'Your words ring so true!'

It was like some passing god of probability slapped their knee in agreement—a hallucination, maybe.

"That's right! Nailed the 50%!"

-......I hope the world just ends.

Cheonma felt all his accumulated knowledge crumbling and hung his head.

Flash!

The two ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cores spun wildly, merged into one, and erupted in bright light, transforming into a single pill.

And with it, a clear, refreshing scent wafting to his nose.

Jackpot.

The aroma was so ecstatic, you knew it instantly—this was no ordinary item.

The greenish poison core and red inner core were gone, replaced by a deep black hue.

Ding.

"......Whoa."

Carpe swallowed hard after checking the options.

He'd guessed from the scent it was special, but a Legendary elixir?

-Options are brutal. Near-Epic level. Top-tier among Legendary elixirs, no doubt.

"Even I can tell. But what's this potential awakening?"

Everything else was straightforward, but that line was vague.

-Random beneficial effect on the consumer. Usually extra stat boosts.

Super lucky cases could even grant skill points.

Or permanent attack/defense boosts, attribute power increases—random buffs galore.

"Whoa, even elixirs are pure gacha now."

-Still a jackpot. No downsides. Eat without worry...... though a bit wasteful.

"Huh? Why?"

-You're such ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an over-specced monster, you can't fully absorb the pill's effects. Shame.

"Eh?"

Carpe tilted his head. Where did it say anything about poor absorption?

All options looked like pure honey—no duds.

"They all seem great?"

-The 50% resistances. Meaningless for you.

"What? Isn't that the core? Halves attribute damage......"

-If only. Think logically. A level 50-limited item with permanent 50% attribute damage reduction?

"......"

Then it shouldn't? rose to his throat, but Carpe held it back. Pointless—he'd just get scolded.

-In Last Savior, 'resistance' isn't damage reduction. It's resistance to status ailments.

"......Huh?"

-Yeah. 50% less chance of burn, freeze, poison, etc.

"No way!"

Carpe wailed. He got what Cheonma meant.

His server-first 10-star skill Unlock.

The elixir's shine dulled next to that ultimate status cleanser.

-Resistances are hard to stack, so this is top-tier...... but of all things.

"Haaa...... God-game my ass......"

It stung.

Couldn't fully utilize a hard-won Legendary elixir.

And blaming Unlock? No one to fault but bad luck......

-Not impossible to get 100% effect.

"O? For real?"

-You're locked out by Unlock, but not others. Feed it to them.

"Ah, that simple?"

His elixir-high brain had fixated on self-consumption.

"But won't the stat option flop? Familiars don't have stats."

From what Carpe saw, familiars' status windows lacked stats. Only skill points on level-up.

-Not shown doesn't mean absent. Hidden stats exist, grow like players' on level-up.

Just randomly distributed per level, unlike manual allocation.

"Ah, players just manage skills, huh."

-Yeah. So no issue—familiars have stats.

"No worries then."

Carpe decided to invest the pill in his familiars.

They were eternal game partners—why not empower them now?

But a new dilemma arose.

One pill. Three mouths.

"......Who gets it?"

Three Epic-grade familiars any other player might never get even after quitting.

-Tough call. Any would be fine. Man, too good and problems arise—Unlock, now this.

"Tell me about it."

As Carpe drowned in first-world problems, Tina approached.

"My lord. A request."

"Hm? What?"

"If it pleases you, I wish to consume the elixir."

-Oh ho. Rare ambition from her.

Uncharacteristic for material-indifferent Tina (mounts excepted).

"I am the knight guarding allies at the vanguard. Exposed to the most attacks."

Thus, highest status ailment risk.

Best for party if she took it. Knightly duty. So claimed Tina.

"Hmm, makes sense. You're up front."

"Indeed, my lord."

"Alright. Taiji Supreme Purity Pill to Tina......"

Then.

"Master. Objection."

Silent Mirage stepped forward.

Carpe blinked at the unexpected interruption.

"Objection?"

"Yeah. Tina's point valid. But not the riskiest."

"Then? Who is?"

"Me. Not Tina. Me."

Mirage's case:

Doppelganger-based homunculus.

Mission since Magic King days: infiltrate enemy lines, disrupt, steal intel.

"Enemy territory dangerous. Especially poison. So I should take it."

"......Sounds logical."

Not just whining—solid reasoning.

"Kyuu kyuu!" "Hm? Mukhyang, what's up?"

"Kyuuut~! Kyuu!"

"My lord. Mukhyang says it should eat it."

"......What's Mukhyang's reason?"

"Just smells too good. Wants to eat."

"Yeah, Mukhyang's out."

"Kyuuung?!"

Disappointed, Mukhyang drooped its ears.

"They usually share everything to death, now this over one snack?"

Carpe panicked.

Never dreamed they'd assert rights over food.

Always overly yielding, now why?

-This is it.

"Huh? What?"

-Remember me mentioning? Jobs handling multiple familiars inevitably headache over affinity.

"Kinda recall......"

Affinity decides familiar obedience.

But more crucial: familiar-to-familiar affinity.

-Usually bad by default. You're the exception.

Tamer/Spirit Mage hell-mode? Affinity management sucks.

Low inter-familiar affinity hampers combat synergy.

Worst case: infighting. Nightmare fuel.

-Last Savior has unique quests for those jobs.

"Quests? What kind?"

-Coming soon.

And soon, Cheonma's words proved true.

Ding.

"......Whoa."

-TL;DR: Quest triggered their spat. Not real beef, so chill.

"Got it. Scared me."

Thought it was infighting—relief.

But this event was notoriously vicious.

Success: rewards.

Failure: affinity tanks.

All that grinding wasted on one quest? Rage-inducing.

Tamer boards on RaSe IpVen overflowed with game-bashing.

Familiar jobs = walking time bombs.

Not for Carpe, though.

Ding.

"Phew. Mirage, if you're this insistent, no choice. Time to prove your worth."

"Just what I wanted. Tina."

"First direct bout in 800 years. Pray your skills have grown."

What? Fight?

Shocked, Carpe tried intervening, but.

Poof!

Tina and Mirage reverted to doll form.

They grabbed sticks, drew a big circle in the dirt.

"Rules same as 800 years ago. Out of circle loses."

"Yeah. Good."

"Mukhyang, judge please. Signal on my mark."

"Kyuu...... kyuu...... kyuu!"

"Yup!"

The two dolls grunted, shoving each other.

-......What're they doing?

"......Their way of settling it, I guess. Makes sense—seven relics together, bound to clash sometimes."

Distinct personalities under one roof—conflict inevitable, but resolved their way.

Though he never expected something this cute.

Moments later.

Thud.

"Ah."

"Hoo. My victory. Mirage, you've grown strong."

"Ugh. Unfair. Whine."

"Refine more, and I can't guarantee win. Good match."

Winner: Tina.

Victorious general vibe.

Spoils to the victor!

But sadly, not hers.

"Kyuu kyuu!"

The Taiji Supreme Purity Pill nestled in Mukhyang's front paws. Blissful expression.

"......Cowardly. Mukhyang. Using my mount as hostage? Unknightly."

Mukhyang had declared: no pill, no rides!

Unavoidable for Tina.

Ding.

"......Freeloading everything now. Stats just handed over?"

-Like master, like pet. Look at that sneaky grin.

"Kyuu kyuu!"

Cowardly or not, Mukhyang was happy.

After eyeing the pill, it popped it into its cheek.

"Tasty?"

"Kyuuut!"

"Good. But Mukhyang, anything different? Potential trigger, right?"

-Asking it won't help. Check status.

"True. Doesn't seem to know. Question mark over its head."

-Yeah. Question...... what?

Cheonma sensed oddity, probed.

-What? What's there?

"......Huh?"

Carpe and Cheonma's gazes snapped to Mukhyang.

And they saw it.

"Kyuu?"

The yellow question mark over Mukhyang's head.

Carpe instinctively tapped it.

Ding.

"Whoa."

-Whoa.