Dragon Necromancer: Starting With First Dragon Bloodline-Chapter 60: Poison isn’t scary

The ringing sound in his head wasn’t the only thing Noa had heard.

When the floor crack expanded, it also made weird noises, as if notifying him and the others that something interesting was emerging.

’It’s like quest completion music from video games,’ Noa thought.

He then remembered spending countless hours grinding in his favorite video games and hoping for a rare drop.

After that, he glanced at the system message.

[You have defeated 1 out of 2 bosses of the tomb]

[You get a special chest for every victory]

[The end of the path is near]

[Ashes of the dead dragon await you]

Seeing this, Noa blinked a couple of times, readying himself for the chest and the road ahead.

Then he looked back at the floor.

It had already stopped vibrating and now revealed a crude stone altar rising from within.

"Is that our reward?" Thalia questioned.

She approached the chest, expecting to receive something better than the last one.

Noa nodded.

He simply walked toward her, sword ready to open it like before. Unlike the previous chest, this one had no lock.

It also looked pristine.

Because of the colorless pressure it exuded, Noa was forced to exhale deeply.

The other two girls didn’t stay still either. They moved side by side, their eyes flaring with greedy curiosity.

Noa expected betrayal from them, so he stayed vigilant the entire time.

"Be my guest," he pointed at Thalia, offering her the chance to open it this time.

The girl smiled at him.

She was touched by the gesture and grateful that Noa had thought of her. With snow particles keeping her company, Thalia reached the colorless case and tapped on it.

No time was wasted.

In an instant, the lid slid open, revealing a single flickering glow. It radiated intense pressure, heavy with mana and stained by corruption.

"It reeks!" Liz exclaimed, stepping back in fright.

"What the fuck! Close it, please!" Lily didn’t have a great reaction either. She nearly stumbled because of the foul, almost dizzying smell.

Thalia was the closest one to the chest. She was also the first one to see the item inside.

Thankfully, her snow mana fragments reacted quickly, shielding both her and Noa’s faces from the pressure while ignoring the girls.

Instead of closing the lid, she also got closer to the chest.

Noa, too, didn’t lag behind. His gaze peered through the thick layer of snow, past the flickering glow, and found something he wasn’t entirely happy about. At least his curiosity was piqued.

Inside, resting on a sheet of dust, lay a single item.

At first, it was concealed by corruption’s thick strain.

But after Noa shooed the dust away and forced the pressure to vanish, he saw it.

A ring forged from the hardened ice pulsed with intense and steady mana flow, making Noa’s head foggy for no reason.

To his surprise, the system didn’t stay still.

[Item: Blue Ice Ring]

[Rank: rare]

[Tier: 2]

[Effect: 10% damage boost in snow-element techniques; 10% increased chance to deal crit damage]

[Warning: Blue Ice Ring is a corrupted item. It needs purified mana water and a tier 3 Paladin to cleanse. Touching it barehanded could be fatal]

Noa sighed.

It was a great artifact indeed, but the academy would take it and compensate them with measly credits.

Thalia’s eyes widened. She noticed the item, and her eyes sparked with excitement.

The glow of her snow reflected against the ring, as if it had already belonged to her. But she detected that something was off about it.

The artifact gave off an eerie, almost creepy aura.

Although it was small, it still had enormous pressure and made everyone in its presence either sweat or cough violently.

As Noa was thinking about what to do, the system spoke to him... again.

’You are awfully chatty today, huh?’ he pondered, peeking at the rows of text.

[Dragon’s Constitution detected]

[Dragon’s Constitution]

[Description:]

[Because of the divine draconic blood coursing through your body, your flesh and bones are no longer fully human. It grants you scale-like tough skin, increased endurance, and regeneration, and blesses you with full resistance against mana poisoning]

[You endured toxins]

[The ability Dragon’s Constitution is evolving]

[Your poison resistance has increased]

Noa read through the hovering system panels and inhaled softly, his heart racing with happiness.

’Not only my internal mana poisoning, but now I get resistance to other poisons as well?’ he thought and looked at the last notification.

[Because of your divine bloodline, you can now cleanse lower-tier corruptions]

It was the final straw he needed.

"That... is actually useful," he muttered and extended his hand towards the ring.

Thalia was about to grab his wrist to warn him, but Noa’s calm, soft gaze calmed her nerves.

Without uttering a single word, Noa seized the ring.

He then flickered it between his fingers, waiting for something to happen—something to conquer the corruption.

Suddenly, his blood boiled in his veins.

They felt hot and grew hotter.

Shadows moved towards him, wrapping his fingers and the ring together. Mana particles lingered on his skin before diving into the artifact, cleaning it from within.

A moment later, the ring glowed in a different color.

The oppressive feeling it exuded began to vanish, replaced by gentle light.

"Is that it?" Thalia asked, the other two girls still gagging, fingers pressed tightly to their noses.

Noa said nothing.

He inspected the details of the ring and looked at Thalia with a soft grin. "Yours," he finally voiced, gesturing for her to take it.

The girl blinked. "You sure?" she asked, clearly not expecting Noa to hand it over so casually. Still, her cheeks blushed red in delight, her expression brightening instantly.

He nodded. "Of course it’s yours. Who else would I give it to?"

Silence settled inside the chamber.

There were no rats targeting their flesh and no traps waiting to be triggered.

Only Noa and Thalia existed for a heartbeat.

But as she was inspecting the ring and putting it on her ring finger with the same embarrassed face, Liz and Lily leaned in, their greed all too obvious.

Thankfully, they remained silent.

Neither of them complained nor demanded to exchange it for credits.

However, they noted something.

Seeing how Noa had cleansed corruption with his seemingly useless beast, they realized Graveworm could do more than it was believed to.

Noa wasn’t dumb, and he knew that.

Still, he did it after considering the consequences and concluded that even if the girls started rumors about his capabilities, it wouldn’t really affect his plans too much.

Just because he could deal with minor corruption didn’t mean he had an elemental affinity.

He could simply act as if his beast could devour it.

Yes, the questions would be born and doubts would grow, but he was already on a path to proving Ashe’s and his own potential.

There was no way he would back down over something so simple.

With that in mind, he ignored their chatter and eyed Thalia carefully.

Though the girl was still blushing for unknown reasons, she seemed to like the ring. Mana flared faintly in her direction. It wasn’t her doing, but it was the mana’s response to the artifact.

Her reign over snow sharpened momentarily.

The air chilled further, freezing the tiny speck of water and dust.

Despite not owning the system, Thalia knew her damage had increased, and she couldn’t wait to test it in action.

Noa was happy for her.

He also enjoyed her adorable reactions quite a bit. "Let’s go then," he said, noticing how her lips curled into a thin smile. "The next boss would be harder."

Liz and Lily exchanged glances, gulping.

Noa took the first step.

Thalia was the next one to move, followed by the two girls in their desperate attempt to earn her favor.

Behind them, the altar sank, the chest vanishing.

Once again, Noa stood before the entrance of another corridor. Of course, it stretched deeper into the tomb and hid more darkness and danger.

With each step he took, the air felt damper.

Not because of Thalia’s snow that nearly transformed how the tomb looked, but because of something eerie ahead.

Every time his foot touched the stone floor, it echoed.

It didn’t take him long to spot movement.

From the tiny gaps in the wall, green insects poured out, red light pulsing through their bloated bellies.

"Damp Leeches," Noa recognized them with a single glance.

They were weak, but quite annoying to deal with—especially when the numbers were on their side.

They hissed in unison. Then they lunged forward.

Noa’s sword cut the air in half and sliced through the first leech that dared to attack him. The creature burst into a spray of green liquid, burning everything it touched.

He was shielded by Thalia’s defensive formation, the snow melting instantly.

Despite that, the ice was quick to regrow around him, providing him with the same sturdy defense as before.

The girl didn’t just stand idly either.

She wanted to check how her attacks fared against these new enemies.

Frost already circled her fingertips.

They were ready to be launched in any shape and form she desired. From heavy balls to sharp needles, Thalia constructed them with a single breath and launched them rapidly.

Every leech that met her attacks head-on exploded on impact.

Some froze before closing the distance, dropping to the ground, either dead or unmoving.

Two minutes later, silence returned to the corridor.

The next path of the maze lay ahead, but before Noa took it or cleaned his bloodied sword, he noticed how the surrounding high walls glimmered.

It was an unusual sight.

Wanting to investigate it, he closed in and brushed his fingers against its surface. "Mine!" he exclaimed, looking at Thalia with a flashy smile. "We found an elemental mine."