BXBX NOVEL Chapter 187: Treasure Hunt (2)
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Chapter 187: Treasure Hunt (2)
And so began the treasure hunt.
While the difficulty was intense, the rules were fairly relaxed, allowing candidates to participate freely, either solo or in teams, as they wished.
As for my choice…
“Dale, are you really going solo?”
Yuren asked, looking disappointed.
“Yeah. Why don’t you just join us as a team?”
“Isn’t it faster to search together with more people?”
Iris and Berald also tried to persuade me, clearly reluctant to let me go alone.
“No, this time, I want to try on my own.”
There were two reasons for my decision.
One was that if I joined, the team\'s strength would become overwhelmingly strong.
Even though the Seven-Star Knights were the elite of the Holy Kingdom\'s heroes, they weren’t particularly challenging opponents for someone like me, who could rival a "Master."
‘Yuren and Berald alone could hold their own against the Seven-Star Knights.’
And if candidates with such power formed a party?
It would become a group so overpowered that Johann Basilio, the "Sword of the Holy Kingdom" and captain of the Seven-Star Knights, would have to step in himself to handle them.
‘That would, of course, defeat the purpose of this being a training exercise to gain practical experience.’
The other reason, which might be even more important…
‘If we form a team, we’ll have to split the bonus points.’
Call it petty.
Call it selfish.
But.
But…
‘I really want to get out of this cursed bottom rank this time.’
Yeah.
Even if it’s not an issue for people like Yuren, Iris, or Camilla, who frequently rank at the top of our year, those small bonus points wouldn’t affect their standings much.
But for someone like me, stuck at the bottom, even the smallest bonus points could lead to a significant jump in ranking.
“Ugh. I wanted to team up with Dale….”
“Well, if he’s being stubborn, what can we do?”
With a sulky expression, Lanez slumped her shoulders, while Sophia shrugged indifferently as if it didn’t matter to her whether she was in my party or not.
Anyway.
After a discussion, the parties were decided as follows:
Party 1: Yuren, Iris, Camilla, Albert.
Party 2: Sophia, Lanez, Berald, Juliet.
Party 3: Me.
Even split into three parties, each member’s strength was far beyond the average candidate (excluding Albert and Juliet).
They would likely have no trouble facing the Seven-Star Knights during the treasure hunt.
“Well then, see you later.”
“Yeah. Don’t think I’ll lose to you, Dale.”
Yurina clenched her fist with a determined look in her eyes.
I chuckled and nodded.
‘She’s surprisingly competitive, isn’t she?’
Well, if she wasn’t, she wouldn’t have reached the position of the greatest hero in my previous life.
“I’ll be heading off first.”
“Wait a moment, Dale.”
“Hm?”
“Let me cast a blessing on you.”
“Hmm… I don’t think I really need it, though.”
“Still.”
Iris approached me and chanted a prayer.
A soft white light emanated from her hands, seeping into my body.
“Dale.”
As she cast the blessing, Iris leaned in slightly and whispered in my ear.
“Shall we make a bet?”
“A bet?”
“Yes. Whoever finds the treasure first has to grant the other a wish.”
“Oh?”
Granting a wish, huh.
“What kind of wish?”
“Hehe. It wouldn’t be fun if I told you now, would it?”
Fair enough.
“All right.”
“Hehe. It’s a secret from the others, okay?”
Iris winked with a bright smile.
Nodding, I parted ways with my comrades and headed alone toward the ruins.
I passed through the crowded entrance of the ruins where other candidates were gathered and ventured deeper inside.
“It’s huge.”
While it wasn’t as vast as the Abyss beneath the Hero Academy, it was still far larger than most ruins.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve never explored these ruins before in my previous life.’
During the war against the demons, the ruins had collapsed entirely along with Grace’s tomb, so this was my first time investigating this place.
‘Why did Grace build her tomb beneath these ruins?’
The ominous and gloomy atmosphere of the ruins made it the worst possible place for a burial site, no matter how you looked at it.
As I wandered the ruins, still pondering that mystery…
Clank, clank.
The sound of armor echoed as a holy knight appeared from around the corner of the corridor.
“Hm? You’re solo, not in a party?”
The Seven-Star Knight, noticing me, looked intrigued.
“Have you found the treasure yet?”
“No, not yet.”
“I see. Then… let me make it so you can’t move for, oh, about 30 minutes.”
The knight leisurely drew the sword at his waist.
Of course, it wasn’t a real sword but a training weapon.
“This might be a fake, but… it’ll hurt quite a bit if you get hit, so be careful.”
“How kind of you.”
“Haha. I wouldn’t want to injure future heroes, after all.”
With that, the knight casually raised his sword.
I couldn’t help but wonder if this approach could really be called “practical training.”
But from the knights’ perspective, it was understandable.
‘They can’t go all out against candidates.’
Of course.
That’s assuming the opponent is a “normal candidate.”
“Well then.”
The holy knight sharpened his gaze and began channeling his mana.
A bright white aura flowed along the blade.
“Let’s see what you’re capable of!”
Tap!
The knight closed the distance in an instant with movements so light it was hard to believe he was wearing full plate armor.
His sword swung toward my shoulder.
Clink.
“Huh…?!”
I casually caught the blade mid-swing and countered with a kick to the knight’s stomach.
Thud!
“Gah!”
The knight let out a dull groan as he tumbled across the floor like a kicked pebble.
“Ugh…!”
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The Holy Knight gritted his teeth, swallowing a groan, and staggered to his feet.
Without hesitation, he channeled his magic to its maximum and charged fiercely once more.
‘Indeed, he wasn’t chosen for the Seven-Star Order for nothing, was he?’
Instead of panicking or mumbling in disbelief about how a mere candidate could challenge him, he had already made a quick decision to throw himself into another full-on attack.
His rapid judgment, something even seasoned heroes might struggle to display, earned my silent respect.
Fwoooosh!
Flames blazed violently along the blade of my sword.
The sound of searing flesh mixed with the gray smoke rising from the knight’s armor.
Ashen Sword, Form One.
"Gray Cleave."
The flaming blade shattered the knight’s sword, which had been enveloped in pure white aura, and sent him flying.
“Aaaahhh!”
Crash!
The Holy Knight’s body slammed into the wall with a deafening thud, causing it to cave in and crack like a spider’s web.
Pinned against the wall, the knight rolled his eyes back and passed out cold.
"Ah."
Did I overdo it?
"At least… it doesn’t seem like anything’s broken…"
I approached the unconscious knight and inspected him.
His armor was dented, and his body was scorched with burns here and there, but thankfully, there didn’t seem to be any life-threatening injuries.
‘Using Ignition might have been overkill.’
Though it lasted barely a second.
I’d used Ignition as a gesture of respect toward him, but it seemed like I had gone too far.
"Well… no serious injuries, so I guess it’s fine."
Leaving the unconscious knight behind, I ventured deeper into the ruins.
As I searched my surroundings, looking for clues to the treasure...
Woooom…
A mysterious white light appeared before me.
"That’s…"
It was the same light I had seen before, back when I carried a drunken Yurina on my back during a stroll through the garden.
"Why is that here?"
Frowning, I stared at the light.
[Blessing… of the seven eyes… received… person.]
“...!”
It spoke?
It actually spoke.
[Follow… me… please… help.]
The voice broke off like a malfunctioning radio.
The mysterious light, which had been floating aimlessly, suddenly sped away.
“...Damn it.”
I hesitated for a moment, debating whether to follow the unknown light.
But the hesitation was brief.
I pushed off the ground and chased after the retreating light.
‘Where is it leading me?’
The light led me to a dead end deep within the ruins, where no path seemed to lead anywhere.
Woooom!
The white light gathered into a round shape and transformed into a gate large enough for a person to step through.
"...You’ve got to be kidding me."
I frowned at the sight of the gate.
Normally, I wasn’t the type to enter suspicious gates without any preparation.
But…
‘That voice… it sounded desperate.’
Though I couldn’t clearly understand what it said due to the broken phrases, the desperation in its tone was undeniable.
"Hoo."
With a deep breath, I stepped toward the gate.
Woooom!
A floating sensation enveloped me, and my vision flickered.
“Ugh…”
When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a vast cavern.
Lights like the mysterious one from earlier illuminated the cavern ceiling, and in the center stood a massive statue.
It was of a woman, her hands clasped in prayer, her head bowed.
It wasn’t difficult to guess her identity.
"The Light of Life… Grace."
Narrowing my eyes, I gazed at the statue of Grace.
As Iris had described, Grace’s appearance practically screamed "Holy Mother."
Her serene face exuded warmth, and her maternal aura was evident even in stone form.
‘She’s almost on par with Iris.’
As I took a step closer for a better look at the statue…
Woooom.
The lights gathered at the ceiling began to converge in one spot before slowly descending.
The collected lights gradually formed into the shape of a small girl.
[Wow~ You actually came! I was worried you’d chicken out and run!]
The figure of the girl, made entirely of white light, spoke in a playful tone.
Or rather, her voice resonated directly in my head.
"Who… are you?"
[Nice to meet you.]
The girl spun around in place with a bright smile.
[I am the Light of Life, Grace.]
"...Grace, you say?"
[Yup, that’s right. See that statue behind me? That’s modeled after me.]
“…”
I alternated glances between the statue and the girl in front of me, my lips pressed firmly together.
"If you’re going to lie, at least make it believable…"
RUMBLE!
Suddenly, the cavern shook violently, as if about to collapse.
The small girl smiled sweetly as she floated closer to me.
[What’s wrong? Got complaints? If you do, go ahead and spill them all.]
“…”
I still had no idea what was going on, but one thing was becoming crystal clear.
‘The legends about Grace handed down in the Holy Kingdom are a complete lie.’
Looking at the girl, who had crossed her arms and smirked mischievously, I let out a dry laugh.
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