The Genius of Cloning in the Academy City-Chapter 134: Violet in the Snow! (4)

The reconnaissance, which had started again from the morning, continued as numerous Violet soldiers moved up and down the mountainside, searching the area.

They scoured every inch for traces of a footprint or a piece of clothing, looking for signs of human presence.

"Where are you! Alex!"

The number of personnel currently mobilized was two hundred and ten. Two full platoons were widely dispersed, scanning the surroundings.

In the sky, five hang gliders were conducting aerial reconnaissance.

To make matters worse, I received help from Daphne and the blue-haired autonomous mobile magic staff.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

"Did you find anything?"

"Well... nothing caught yet."

"Nothing, at all. This kind of tracking method is only useful for short distances."

Daphne, holding the electronic staff, was searching all over the place, while Lucian attempted magical tracking. There were no results.

"Te, the outside of the tent is a bit cold...!"

"If you stay close to here, it’ll be a little better."

"Th-thank you!"

When Levi shivered from the cold, Irene handed her a hot pack. Hadn’t I warmed her up yesterday? Was that not enough?

"Ugh, ugh... my whole body aches... maybe it’s because I slept in the cold?"

Granite couldn’t control his body and moved stiffly. The large man with an axe looked like a tin man.

"Hey, but why are you girls so fine? You’ve been full of energy since morning. Did you put a stove in the tent?"

"Well, it’s a secret!"

When he asked, I chuckled and avoided answering.

The team members were moving in the middle of the Violet squad, remaining alert. Unfortunately, the mountain was so rugged that we had no choice but to proceed on foot for some time.

Meanwhile, Violet soldiers from the 1st platoon, 3rd squad, 2nd unit discovered an unusual trace. A black device was buried in the snow.

When they dug through the snow, a tire appeared.

"A wheel?"

"This looks like an ATV. Didn’t they rent ATVs to travel?"

Just then, Kalia, who was nearby, came closer. Memories of the investigation we did before heading to the dungeon resurfaced.

"Didn’t they say they rented three four-wheeled bikes before moving?"

"Wow, they came all the way here!"

Why on earth did they think the Holy Grail was hidden in this mountain? And that it could increase their power. As far as we knew, there was no such artifact as the Holy Grail.

"They said it would increase their power, right? Could the rumors about an Ether Amplifier have been distorted?"

"Ah! That might be it!"

An artifact that increases power... Maybe one of the hunters found an Ether Amplifier by chance in another dungeon and used it. Naturally, it would have some effect.

That rumor could have been distorted into something completely different as it passed from mouth to mouth.

I stopped these random thoughts and continued to search the area. We were able to find several wrecked vehicles. The four-wheeled bikes from the photos matched exactly. And with the license plates found, there was no doubt.

"Guys! We’ve found traces here!"

"Broadcast to the headquarters and 1st Air Squadron! We’re narrowing down the search area!"

Based on the traces, we gradually narrowed down the search area. What had been invisible for the whole day started to be discovered one by one.

"Here, there are footprints!"

"Several of them."

At first, the footprints were scattered chaotically.

"Violet! Isn’t this blood?"

Kalia discovered scattered bloodstains in an area filled with ice shards.

"There are also beast tracks. Judging by the shape and the prints... it’s an Atakwan."

Irene bent down and traced the scene, checking the surroundings one by one.

"There are signs of a fight too. Do you want to see?"

"Arrows...?"

We found evidence one by one, stepping forward from trace to trace, using each one as a stepping stone. The gaps between these stepping stones ranged from as short as several dozen meters to several hundred meters or even kilometers. We filled that gap with numbers.

"We found it! I think it’s this way?"

"I’m not sure about the numbers, but I can feel the unique mana of an Awakened. It’s this way!"

Having walked for so long in this dungeon, where the distinction between day and night was nonexistent, it was already lunch. We finally arrived at a cave beneath an ice and rock formation, a place that was difficult to spot even with aerial reconnaissance.

But wait. This place looks familiar?

"Ugh! This is it, isn’t it? The Ether Discharge Device!"

As they say, "The day you go is the day it rains." Could they have been hiding here? We were unsure.

"Levi, if any strange figures show up, shoot them all!"

"Ugh, ugh!"

After positioning the team members at the entrance, the Violet squad, which took the role of the canaries, proceeded with heightened caution. The cave was not dark, as mysterious glowing crystals were scattered around.

"Yep, this is definitely the place we were looking for!"

"The Ether Discharge Device! Two birds with one stone!"

At some point, the canary squad discovered five students around our age, their faces haggard and lying on the ground.

"Ugh, ugh! Who are you?!"

"We’re the rescue team!"

A boy with green hair trembled as he pointed a knife with shaking hands.

Behind him, four other students staggered to their feet.

「Relay to Central Command, we’ve located the rescue targets!」

**

After the rest of the team entered the cave, we provided food to the exhausted students.

They devoured the warm liquid meal voraciously.

"We’re alive… We’re alive!"

"Thank you!"

During the commotion, I briefly conversed with the client’s son.

"So, your father sent you here?"

"Exactly!"

According to Alex, he had convinced his friends to follow him here.

Fortunately, none of his friends were seriously injured.

As Daphne pointed out, their injuries were minor, and they suffered mostly from malnutrition.

"So now it’s time to go home. The adventure is over!"

Hearing my words, the boy looked relieved, though he seemed to hesitate about something.

"Wait… Can’t I stay just a little longer? There’s something I need to find…!"

"The Holy Grail, right?"

I pulled out a note and held it up in front of him.

The boy exclaimed urgently upon seeing it.

"Yes! The Holy Grail. It’s definitely in there! I couldn’t go further in because of all the beasts, but…"

"In there? You mean deeper inside the cave?"

The boy nodded.

Daphne, who had been observing Alex’s group, spoke in a firm tone.

"No. Look at your friends. You need to head home immediately. You don’t want them to get hurt even more, do you?"

Hearing Daphne’s warning, the boy dropped his head in shame and fell silent.

Why was he so fixated on the Holy Grail?

「Inside, you said? It’s likely where the Aether Amplifier is located!」

While Violet’s squad guarded the cave entrance, I led the team toward the location the students had mentioned.

We found a staircase.

Descending the stairs, we arrived at a vast plaza-like area.

The space was warm, and it was crawling with beasts.

The layout was similar to the ruins in the Chloris Forest.

"There are so many of them."

"Yeah, but they’re all low-level beasts. Let’s go!"

-Tatatang!

-Clang!

After a few rounds of gunfire and sword strikes, we wiped out all the beasts and stood before the Aether Amplifier.

"So, activating this will grant incredible power?"

"Trust me!"

Despite the team’s apprehension, I hesitated only briefly before activating the Aether Amplifier.

As the energy radiated out, it seeped into the team’s bodies and was slowly absorbed.

"This power…!"

"It’s my second time experiencing it, but it’s still amazing."

"Save the power testing for later. For now, let’s focus on getting out!"

Handling both the rescue and the team’s enhancement in one go was quite the stroke of luck.

As we exited the cave, Violet No. 621, who was the last to leave, noticed something peculiar in a corner of the ruins.

It was an ornate golden goblet with gilded metal.

The gilding was peeling off, making it look shabby.

Violet No. 621 opened a status window and frowned.

[Golden Goblet of Pure Intent ☆]

"This isn’t… the Holy Grail, is it?"

After reading the description in the status window, there didn’t appear to be any mystical properties.

There was a unique function, but it was unremarkable compared to other relics.

I led the students and the team back outside the cave.

We began descending the mountainside to where the vehicles were parked, but a warning came from the sky.

「Emergency! Emergency! Multiple beasts are approaching!」

Before the warning had fully registered, Atacwan packs emerged from between the piles of rocks and ice.

Their four eyes glared in our direction.

"Roooaaar!"

"Why now?! Why are they showing up now?!"

As I shouted in frustration, Lucian exclaimed as if realizing something.

"Damn it, it’s that amplifier! The energy released when it was activated must’ve leaked outside the cave!"

I clenched my teeth in irritation.

These monsters were once again in our way!

「Command to all units: Deploy aerial guided bombs!」

Fortunately, there was still some distance between us and the beast swarm.

Without hesitation, I ordered the bombs.

"Yippee-ki-yay!"

Soon, five Violet bombs soared through the sky.

With a thunderous explosion, the beasts were obliterated into pieces.

The shocked Atacwan scattered in retreat.

"Victory!"

Our celebration was short-lived as a loud rumble echoed.

Snow began pouring down from the mountain summit.

"An avalanche! Why now?!"

"That’s because you set off so many bombs!"

Oops, due to the aftermath of Violet’s aerial bomb attack, an avalanche occurred. The team members quickly began running away.

"It’s too late! Gather around me!"

Daphne urgently called for all of us. The avalanche swept everyone away. Standing directly before such a massive natural disaster, the power of the Awakened felt like a child’s play.

"Everyone, huddle together!"

The Violets, who had been separated from the team, grabbed the closest ones to them and crouched on the ground.

"Uwaaa! We’re being dragged away!"

"Hold on tight!"

After confirming that they were firmly secured, the Violets held on as best as they could.

How long did they endure? The mountain finally settled. One by one, the Violets dug themselves out of the snow and greeted the outside air.

"We’re alive! Hooray!"

"Yay!"

We dug ourselves out of the snow and made our way back. The effects of the avalanche didn’t reach the place where the vehicles were parked.

"It’s time to leave!"

We finally reached the spot where the car had been parked. After getting the clients’ children into the armored vehicle, we also got in and prepared to head back.

Before leaving, I took out the Holy Grail and showed it to the client’s son.

"Is this the Holy Grail you were talking about?"

"Y...Yes! This is definitely it!"

Alex, seeing the Holy Grail, stared wide-eyed.

"Hey, you said you were part of the rescue team, right? That Holy Grail... could you give it to me? Please! I’m begging you!"

I asked.

"Why? We were the ones who found it first. You know the rules of the dungeon, right? The one who hunts and collects it first is the owner."

"Th-that’s..."

He hesitated. The answer could be heard from behind. One of his friends had spoken out in dissatisfaction.

"That guy plans to use it to get stronger and confess to a girl! To our student council president!"

"Hey! Yuri! Why are you saying that?"

Alex shouted after hearing his friend’s revelation. I asked back in surprise.

"Student council president? Are you talking about Adela?"

"How do you know... Yes, that’s right! I’m going to use the power of this Holy Grail to get stronger. Then I’ll confess! Adela’s family has a long tradition of knights and warriors in service! So..."

Alex, who had been hesitating, suddenly shouted something.

"I’m going to become a strong man! With the power of this Holy Grail, I’ll become the strongest hunter! If I do that... maybe I can win Adela President’s heart?"

I felt deflated. 621 handed him a cup.

"Well, that’s a good idea. Here, take it."

"R-really?"

"Yeah! Good luck."

He held the golden cup like it was something precious, then got into the car.

"Violet, isn’t that something valuable? Can we just give it to him?"

When Kalia asked, I shook my head.

"No, it probably doesn’t have much value."

His father was a businessman who dealt in artifacts. Even without a status window, he’d likely recognize what it was.

And even if it were the real Holy Grail, it would still be hard for him to win Adela’s heart.

"Good grief, to win Adela’s heart, he’d have to be someone like a scholarship officer. He doesn’t know anything."

"Foolish guy."

As we imagined when and how his dream would shatter, we returned to the entrance of the gate.