Chapter 24

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Episode 5 - Hunting Festival [4]

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The roar of a Class 6 wild beast shook half the mountain.

A Class 6 wild beast is called a Walking Calamity.

Due to a restriction spell, these Class 6 beasts are unable to leave the mountain.

’Damn, that was close.’

It’s impossible to escape a Class 6 wild beast.

Starting at Class 5, all wild beasts undergo a complete evolution.

The mana in their bodies condenses and fuses with their flesh, bones, and organs.

Their physical capabilities increase by more than three times, and the amount of mana they can release is at least 170% greater than before.

’There’s no way I can hurt them without risking my life.’

While climbing the mountain, Class 5 and 6 wild beasts began to appear more frequently.

Using my senses, I was able to avoid all the wild beasts, although because of that, it’s taking me longer to reach the cave where the witch lived.

It’s one of the most likely places for the item I’m looking for to appear.

According to the game, it was a cave full of curses from the outside, but due to the magic that holds the wild beasts, the curses in the cave have been suppressed by at least 80%.

’Still, they are curses created by a Class 9 witch.’

Someone who has nearly reached the transcendental level.

A Class 9 is known as a Primordial, while those with 9 Stars are known as Ascension Souls.

However, both Class 10 and 10 Stars are known as Transcendentals.

These titles begin with Class 5 and 5 Stars.

In general, it would be as follows:

Class 5: Evolution.

Class 6: Devourer.

Class 7: Absorption.

Class 8: Infusion.

Meanwhile, the Stars would be similar.

5 Stars: Reformation.

6 Stars: Integration.

7 Stars: Assimilation.

8 Stars: Infusion.

Both wild beasts and villains are classified using the "Class" system, while humans and other races are classified using the "Star" system.

While avoiding a Class 5 wild beast, I finally saw the cave in the distance.

At first glance, it didn’t look like anything special, but when I used Mana Sense, I quickly saw the Power of Chaos.

The Power of Chaos was a dark gray color with purple tones; the air around it seemed to be corrupted.

The curses floating around the cave were easily visible.

Small auroras, similar to the auroras of Earth, floated like clouds.

’I’ll have to ask Rinna to use her magic on me later.’

Of course, I have no way of counteracting those curses.

Fortunately, they are curses that take effect slowly, so the victim begins to die slowly.

As I walked toward the cave, I took a deep breath and finally entered the cave.

Since the curses cause great pain, I don’t know if it was luck or not, but I didn’t feel anything.

However, when I looked at my skin, I noticed that small black bumps and cracks had appeared all over my body.

The cracks meant that the curses were entering my body.

The black marks indicated that the Power of Chaos was corrupting and eroding me.

Basically, it was destroying my whole body.

’It’s a shame that my Heart’s Strength is passive and not active.’

If it were active, I could use the effects of my Heart’s Strength on myself.

But since it’s passive, I can only use it on someone else, not myself.

That’s why my blood is the way it is.

Upon entering the cave, signs that someone had lived out their final days here soon became visible.

’Well, I don’t know which witch died here, but anyway, that doesn’t matter.’

According to the story, the Class 9 witch who died was injured by Bernice to the brink of death and managed to escape to this place.

Of course, the Sacred Academy didn’t exist back then.

After all, the Academy is only about 700 years old, dating back to the founding of the current empire.

After walking for a few more minutes, I came upon some furniture created using basic magic and a small laboratory.

On the other side was a room.

Inside the room, there was a bed made of branches and leaves, and a small table.

’Even if they are no longer human, villains still have common human habits.’

A villain is distinguished only by possessing the Power of Chaos.

Of course, many of them completely suppress their emotions and feelings.

When I looked at the nightstand, I saw only a book and some notes.

I picked up the book, and as soon as I did, I smelled something burning.

’What the hell, a high-level Burn Curse.’

This witch was really crazy.

While it burned my hands, I opened the book and, as I expected, it was a grimoire.

I skimmed through the grimoire briefly; it contained all the spells created by the witch. At the end of the grimoire was her name.

’Belinda Carlisle, that was probably her human name.’

She was known as the Black Spring Witch.

Her sorcery was based on Fire and Erosion, nothing more than that.

He also had several original spells, and his strongest spell was...

"Curse of Nullification."

It allowed him to literally destroy anyone’s mana for a brief period of time.

For anyone, that brief period of time could mean death.

’If she were Class 10, she would have probably injured Director Bernice.’

In any case, I stored the grimoire in my inventory, even though it won’t be of any use to me.

Who knows? Maybe I can find some use for it, like bribing a witch to work for me for a while.

’If you know how to use false promises, they can be very helpful.’

This grimoire would come in handy.

I searched the entire room, but there was nothing else. The skeleton had probably turned to dust, so only a few items remained.

Then I went to the laboratory on the other side.

"This is... a Potion of Enchantment. Why would a Class 9 witch want this?"

〖A person’s power means nothing if they’re in love.〗

"She’s a witch; at least 99% of them live in their own world."

〖Well, that’s true. I’ve killed several witches who were just crazy.〗

Alice probably shrugged.

Besides this potion, there were others.

"Potion of Deception, Potion of Masochism... Wait, what the hell."

〖So she was a perverted and masochistic witch.〗

"That’s not important anyway. How much does all this cost?"

Actually, these potions are so strange that only an irrational person would buy them.

But it’s undeniable that there are people who would buy them.

’Still, how exactly does the Potion of Masochism work? No, it’s better to forget about that.’

With a sigh, I continued looking at the potions.

Some were for causing death by pain, others for bleeding, and some altered mana to have the effect of Mana Reflux.

That last one would serve me quite well.

"Mhm, and this potion."

Shortly after, I noticed a potion. Thanks to the Power of Chaos signature, information about the potion flooded into my mind.

’Emotional Erosion Potion. I’ve never seen anything like this in the game.’

It was a potion unlike any I had seen before, and it was related to emotions, which is quite rare.

Usually, when we talk about magic or sorcery that targets emotions, such spells are so rare that they’re practically nonexistent.

’What effect does it have exactly?’

Since the Power of Chaos signature didn’t contain any further information, only the potion’s name and the creator’s name, I couldn’t find out anything else.

’Fortunately, these potions have signatures.’

Mana signatures or Power of Chaos signatures are a way to store information about an object or anything else.

That way, I can learn the names of these potions.

After looking around for a few more minutes, I got lucky and quickly found the item I was looking for.

The item was just a ring.

In the game, the ring was black with a piece of obsidian that looked like a diamond.

That obsidian was where the curse was contained.

’The Curse of Debilitation is a curse that weakens the overall strength of any living being.’

This curse, at least, weakened by 45%, which was the safest way to get through the first part of Chapter one.

However, it was a shame that the ring only worked once.

Naturally, it’s a single curse; it’s impossible to combine several curses in a small piece of obsidian like this.

"It’s time to go... Cough...!!! Cough...!!!"

〖You must hurry, or you might die within the next few hours.〗

A strong cough made me spit out several mouthfuls of blood.

Looking at my body, I noticed that the cracks had spread across almost my entire body.

’Since I don’t feel any pain, I also don’t know how much it has affected me. I need to go with Rinna.’

Emerging from my thoughts, I walked outside the cave.

I soon began to descend the mountain.

Meanwhile, my cough only worsened, and the cracks, which looked like white lines in my vision, spread even further; some even reached my heart.

***

A wild beast fell to the ground; blood and flesh were everywhere.

Clementine stared at the wild beast for a few seconds before looking away and walking off.

The entire path behind her was filled with wild beasts.

She had killed at least 20 Class 3 beasts so far.

Naturally, her body was already at its limit; however, she persisted in killing more.

’My goal is to be the First Year Representative.’

The competition is naturally brutal right now; all the first-year cadets ran to the Golden Forest.

But she was only worried about three people.

They were Adel, Lumina, and Verónica.

They were considered the strongest first-years.

Clementine gripped the hilt of her sword tightly.

’I don’t know how many wild beasts those three have killed, but it’s definitely no fewer than mine.’

However, what Clementine didn’t know was that the others...

had hardly hunted any wild beasts.

While running through the forest, Clementine suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"Cough...!!! Cough...!!!

Someone coughed violently as large amounts of blood trickled from their mouth.

Seeing the person in that state, Clementine thought:

’Adel, what happened to him?’

She didn’t have to wait long to see the black cracks and stains covering his body.

’He fought a witch; besides, those marks... There must be a place here where the Power of Chaos is concentrated.’

Clementine knew that exposure to the Power of Chaos causes those marks, and the cracks meant that he had been cursed by some pretty serious curses.

Adel knelt for a few seconds, letting the blood—so red—fall to the ground.

Then he stood up and walked away as if it were nothing.

As he walked, he muttered something that Clementine heard.

"Ugh, I need to go see Rinna..."

Clearly, he was seeking help from Rinna, the Saint.

Clementine watched him, and soon he disappeared from view.

Then she looked where the blood was scattered, and her eyes couldn’t help but widen.

"W-what the hell...!? How is that possible!?"

Before her, there was a strange scene, one in which Adel’s blood was doing something to the plants and grass around her.