Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Test (2)
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“Mystic Gates are more dangerous the more wounds they have.”
Most adventurers thought that Mystic Gates covered in wounds were the most dangerous.
“But the most dangerous ones are those without a single wound. No one knows what’s inside.”
Experienced adventurers thought differently.
“That’s why parties started forming.”
That was the reason adventurers began properly organizing parties.
Of course, the concept of parties had existed in the past.
Adventurers of various classes would form parties to cover each other’s weaknesses and set out on adventures.
But after Mystic Gates appeared, the role divisions in those parties became more systematic.
Systematic to the point that the Adventurer’s Association had already specified it in their rules, based on data brought back by adventurers and their own research and investigations.
- When attacking a Mystic Gate, we strongly recommend entering with a minimum of four people: one warrior, one wizard, one archer, and one pirate or thief.
It wasn’t just a recommendation—it was a strong one.
And it was justified.
According to the Adventurer’s Association’s research, four-person parties composed that way had a survival rate about 125 percent higher than those that weren’t.
In any case, forming a four-person party was basic of basics, and adventurers’ combat styles had evolved accordingly.
While the warrior stood in front, facing and blocking monsters, the archer and wizard attacked from behind, and the thief or pirate supported the fight from various angles—that was the foundation.
Dibo knew that fact.
He was an aspiring adventurer, after all.
A pretty promising one, at that. Thanks to his innate combat sense, which was exceptionally sharp. He just hadn’t awakened a circle, so he couldn’t become an adventurer.
In any case, Dibo had steadily studied and trained to become a warrior adventurer, and he was still doing so.
‘What’s this?’
But now, that common knowledge of his was crumbling.
‘That guy’s a wizard?’
El Pam was the one shattering his common knowledge.
It wasn’t just surprise at a single wizard taking down over twenty Orange Mushrooms by himself.
That was entirely possible.
Especially for a wizard who used area-of-effect magic—they could do even more in one go.
What surprised Dibo was the method.
Fire Arrow—just that one spell to take them all down.
It was natural to be shocked.
But Dibo didn’t just stand there gaping.
‘Telekinesis?’
Instead, he tried to analyze what El Pam had shown.
‘This boss isn’t ordinary.’
And then Dibo started calculating.
Soon, he finished his mental math.
“Boss, that was amazing! I’ve never seen anything like it! Wow, with skills like that, Mystic Gates will be a piece of cake. Ah, hold on a sec. I’ll go harvest the magic stones from those mushroom bastards right away.”
He decided to follow El Pam.
El Pam wasn’t surprised by that reaction.
‘As expected.’
Dibo’s response was exactly as anticipated.
It wasn’t hard to predict.
What Dibo was showing now was the basics of being an adventurer.
When facing something new, rather than fearing it, you calculate—and if there’s profit to be had, you grab it without hesitation.
Of course, that was a dangerous approach.
If you wanted to stay alive, the sensible thing was to react sensitively to the unknown and keep your distance.
But the first adventurers, along with all those who etched their names into Maple World’s history like stars in the night sky—they all adventured in that dangerous way.
Dibo was one of them.
From El Pam’s perspective, it was exactly the reaction he’d hoped for.
“Boss, I got all the magic stones!”
Now Dibo wouldn’t raise any more doubts.
“Let’s smash this Mystic Gate!”
And so, standing before the Mystic Gate, Dibo stepped through without the slightest hesitation.
El Pam followed right behind.
The world they saw changed.
The dense forest vanished, replaced by a barren, desolate yellowish-brown landscape greeting them.
Scattered here and there were old tree stumps, pillars severed, leaving only their bases.
The moment he saw it, Dibo shouted.
“Be careful!”
No sooner had he spoken than the stumps began writhing on their own, emerging onto the ground.
They used their roots like legs, standing tall upon the earth.
Then the remaining stumps split vertically, revealing a single eyeball.
“Stumps.”
Stump.
A tree-type monster that usually stayed like a tree stump, only moving when it spotted prey, then approaching and wrapping the prey with its roots or branches.
From the description alone, it didn’t seem all that strong.
“These damn things showed up.”
But to adventurers, Stumps were one of the most headache-inducing monsters.
“Swords don’t even stick properly.”
For starters, their defense was on another level compared to slimes or mushrooms.
Even a stationary log wasn’t easy to split with a decent axe.
And Stumps were the size of an adult man or larger. Their trunks were thick enough that two adult men would need to hug it together.
It was practically impossible to deal proper damage with mediocre spears or swords.
“Once those roots get you, it’s hell.”
On top of that, a Stump’s root strength was too much for most adventurers to handle.
Only warrior-class adventurers—those with items granting skills like Physical Training that boosted strength and stamina—could manage it.
“And ranged attacks too.”
Naturally, an archer’s arrows or a wizard’s spells wouldn’t pierce that thick body properly.
Even if you did take one down, the cost was huge.
Warriors’ stamina, wizards’ mana, archers’ arrows—none of it was free.
Of course, there were exceptions.
“Well, for the boss, they’re good prey.”
Namely, fire-attribute wizards!
To El Pam, they were laughably easy opponents.
“A good matchup appeared.”
“You bet!”
That was why Dibo wore a more relaxed smile than ever.
‘With the boss’s skills, Stumps are child’s play. I’ll suck some real honey from this Mystic Gate. Come to think of it, the split was 7:3, right? Man, if things go well, I could make a fortune just from this one. Yeah, now’s when my life turns around. Get the Black Blood Disease treatment money, and some living expenses too.’
El Pam spoke to Dibo’s smiling face.
“For polearm practice.”
“Huh?”
5.
There were many aspiring adventurers in the world.
Among them, the largest portion by far were aspiring warrior adventurers.
It made sense—wizards couldn’t practice casting spells before awakening their magic.
Warriors, on the other hand, could train in the basics even before awakening a circle.
The first things those aspiring warrior adventurers picked up were swords and shields.
More precisely, they learned how to use shields.
“You can’t just swap out your body when it wears down, but shields are different. If conditions allow, you can replace them anytime with new ones. So you have to know how to use a shield. When facing monsters, a shield is your life.”
No matter how great the adventure, it meant nothing if the adventurer died.
Of course, there were exceptions.
“Until you get body reinforcement skills like Iron Body, Warrior Mastery, or Iron Wall.”
Once you acquired skills that made your body tougher than steel, the situation changed.
But that was only after awakening a circle.
Dibo was the same.
Ever since aspiring to be an adventurer, he’d practiced with swords and shields every single day, without fail.
‘Damn, a polearm?’
He’d never once held a polearm.
‘And catch that with it?’
The opponent was a Stump, a monster that was a nightmare for warriors!
‘The boss is a crazy bastard.’
Honestly, this was insane.
Moreover, polearms were among the hardest weapons to handle.
Unlike spears, they had a heavy blade at the tip. The weight distribution was completely different.
‘I’m no natural genius like the polearm warrior Aran.’
And he was supposed to fight with it?
‘Damn, I can’t even swing it properly!’
No way, absurd.
‘How am I supposed to...’
Crack!
‘Huh?’
But the moment Dibo first swung the polearm, he sensed something off.
‘What? Why’s it so easy?’
For one, swinging the polearm felt lighter than expected.
Light enough to swing freely.
Crack!
‘Whoa, the power’s no joke.’
And the power from those swings was on another level compared to swinging a sword.
Grooo!
Every time the polearm moved, the Stump’s body tore apart like an Orange Mushroom.
Above all, Dibo felt it.
‘At this range, no problem.’
Thanks to the polearm’s advantage of long reach, he felt a stability totally different from using a sword.
That stability led to confidence.
“You’re done for.”
And Dibo was the type who burned with confidence more than anyone.
Strong before the strong, terrifyingly fierce before the weak—that was Dibo.
“I’m Dibo, hero of Lith Harbor!”
And so, Dibo began overwhelmingly pressuring the Stumps with his first-ever polearm.
It was an astonishing sight.
‘Crazy, why am I doing this?’
Even Dibo himself was shocked.
Of course, El Pam was different.
‘Just as expected.’
Aran’s disciple—that title wasn’t for just anyone.
No, not just anyone—it was a title unique in Maple World’s history, held only by Dibo.
He even had another nickname.
‘Fitting for the Hero Slayer.’
The one who killed Aran, one of the Six Heroes.
Some said Aran gave her life willingly, but El Pam could say clearly.
‘Giving her life means she saw him as worthy to take her place.’
Aran had acknowledged Dibo, so she could give her life willingly.
‘The Six Heroes are true heroes. They’ll do anything to save the world.’
He could say that because he knew the weight of the word “hero.”
In any case, it was now certain.
‘Training Dibo won’t be difficult.’
There was no need to specially train Dibo.
Just keep hunting repeatedly.
El Pam was the same.
From now on, no need to agonize over complicated things.
‘Just hunt.’
El Pam, steeling his resolve, looked up.
Crack!
On the wasteland, vast expanse of land, the Stumps rooted there began pulling themselves out of the earth along with their deeply embedded roots, drawn by the sounds of battle and comrades’ screams.
Groooar!
They started emitting eerie cries.
“You little shits.”
Seeing them, Dibo grinned.
“You’re coming to be sacrifices for this polearm warrior Dibo with your own feet!”
He showed a spirited demeanor.
Crack!
“Huh?”
But soon, as the number grew—the number of appearing Stumps—Dibo’s expression changed.
Groooar!
Then, the moment an overwhelmingly powerful roar echoed, incomparable to the Stumps, Dibo whipped his head toward the sound.
And in that instant, Dibo yelled.
“Fuck!”
Unlike the mere stumps, a single intact ancient tree came into view.
A colossal ancient tree over ten meters tall.
“Stumpy!”
The moment the powerful Stumpy variant—classified as a boss monster—appeared.
“Boss, let’s bounce!”
In that moment, Dibo no longer burned with battle spirit.
It wasn’t strange.
Stumpy’s strength alone rejected any comparison to regular Stumps.
“That thing’s immune to fire!”
But the most troublesome part was Stumpy’s powerful resistance to fire-attribute attacks.
Even El Pam had no answer.
“Fire Arrow.”
“Huh? Boss? You’re gonna take it down?”
Yet El Pam prepared for battle.
“You can’t even make a proper hole in that thing with Fire Arrow!”
Dibo voiced his doubt at the fact.
Of course, El Pam knew. It was impossible to pierce Stumpy with Fire Arrow.
Even so, El Pam didn’t back down.
‘If it were 1st Circle, I would.’
There was a reason.
‘But 2nd Circle changes things.’
Reaching 2nd Circle wasn’t just about more mana or stronger spells.
‘Because now I can cast two 1st Circle spells at once.’
Now El Pam could use Fire Arrow and Telekinesis simultaneously.
In other words, El Pam could do it.
“Fire Arrow.”
“Huh?”
Casting another Fire Arrow while using Telekinesis.
“Fire Arrow.”
“Whoa!”
On top of that, El Pam could do it.
“Fire Arrow.”
‘In the final battle... I could handle up to five.’
Controlling multiple Fire Arrows simultaneously with Telekinesis.