Chapter 100 : Chapter 100

Chapter 100 - A New Power (4)

“Yay!”

As soon as Artier accepted the contract, the spirit quickly circled around.

“What did people call you?”

“I don’t want to remember. You give me a name.”

‘I don’t think it’s something to be taken so lightly…’

A cold sweat trickled down.

But the spirit’s reaction was quite normal.

To a spirit, a name is only meaningful when making a contract.

And since the last being this spirit made a contract with was most likely a citizen of the Gostera Empire, it was not unreasonable that it didn't want to remember.

“Then… how about Por?”

Artier suggested the first name that came to his mind.

It was one of the default summon names provided in <Cross Destiny>, and Artier wasn't one to put much effort into deciding on names or nicknames.

“Por! I like it!”

[The Nameless Spirit’s name has been changed to Por.]

“Be sure to call me if you need me!”

Flash!

With those words, Por disappeared.

Only then did the two of them sigh and sit down on the spot.

“What was all that about.”

“I’m completely exhausted.”

As they say, crisis is an opportunity.

He felt like he had truly experienced that saying today.

“Now that the curse is gone, it should be fine to get out through the water, right?”

“It seems so. The ice of the lake will probably melt when summer comes.”

“Good. We gained more than I thought…”

Artier, who was muttering, suddenly realized something and closed his mouth.

“Collie, by the way, did you tell them we were here?”

“Pardon? Impossible. In a place this deep, communication magic itself doesn’t reach.”

“They must be worried…”

The situation above was still not grasped.

What if there were additional attacks? How many were injured?

Did they all even gather in the first place?

“Now that things are settled here, let’s go back up.”

“Ugh, my body just dried, and now I have to get wet again?”

“It can’t be helped.”

Artier and Collie, who had returned to the broken hall, jumped towards the translucent ceiling with flight magic.

The cold that would freeze their entire bodies stimulated their bodies again, but this time, the situation where their whole bodies became paralyzed did not occur.

Flash!

A moment later.

Feeling the fresh air, Artier hastily looked around.

The giant Hellmorph was no longer visible.

“Where did everyone go? Collie, can you track them by scent?”

At Artier’s words, Collie landed on a nearby riverbank and transformed into his dog form.

“It seems everyone went that way.”

“Good. Let’s follow them.”

While running after Collie, Artier opened his inventory.

It was to check the equipment he had obtained from the boss fight.

[Imperfect Harmony (Rare)]

Attack Power: 20~25

Options: (Imperfect) Health Recovery -20%, (Harmony) Attack Power +10% for 7 seconds upon health recovery.

Special Option: Once an hour, the effects of (Imperfect) and (Harmony) can be amplified by 2x for 30 seconds.

First, the rare-grade equipment he had been most looking forward to was a Western-style single-edged sword with a blade painted in a deep blue color.

Uniquely, the tip of the blade was angled as if it had been broken.

‘This is really good. I can use this until the late game.’

He needed a weapon anyway.

Without hesitation, Artier tied the sword to his waist.

[Frozen Ancient Helm (Magic)]

Defense: 15

Options: (Frozen) Fire Resistance +20%, Strength +2, Agility +3

The item described as a helm was, amusingly, just a piece of leather.

‘How do I wear this?’

As the bewildered Artier brought it to his head, it stuck to his armor.

A hood was created on his armor.

“Aha…”

In a world where magic is commonplace, this kind of armor is also possible.

Artier smirked and put on the hood.

“Collie, how much further?”

“Just a little more to go.”

BOOM!

As if on cue, an explosion echoed from beyond as soon as Collie finished his words.

The expressions of the two hardened simultaneously.

“Scout the surroundings and check for enemy reinforcements. I’m going straight to the center.”

“Understood!”

The sword was quietly drawn.

Artier, who was running at full speed, reached his hand out into the air.

“Por!”

Fwoosh… Pat!

As he imagined the burning flame itself, the flame cat appeared before his eyes.

“You called me?”

“Yes. I need your help.”

Artier quietly checked his physical condition.

Slowly but surely, his mana was being sucked into Por.

‘In that case, a permanent summon like Collie would be impossible.’

Collie no longer received mana from Artier because he had received help from Beast.

But other summons were different.

To maintain the summon, Artier had to continuously supply mana.

“Let’s fight together.”

“Okay!”

BOOM! KABOOM!

Before long, Artier could see the party.

Hellmorphs were swarming towards the party, which had formed a circle.

‘It doesn’t seem like a difficult battle… but for some reason, everyone looks tired.’

The reason could be seen from the numerous potion bottles piled up at their feet.

For some reason, it seemed they were without a healer.

Collie, let’s change the plan.

What is it?

Join the party immediately and use a healing skill. It seems there’s no healer right now.

Really? Understood.

Artier, who had made contact, looked at Por.

“What should we do now.”

“Can I burn everything?”

Por asked.

There was no malice in that question, only pure curiosity.

“Can you do it?”

“Yes.”

“Then do it.”

“Okay!”

As soon as Artier gave permission, Por immediately kicked off the air and ran.

“Strange things! I’ll burn them all!”

[Por uses a skill.]

Fire Storm (Lv.1): Creates a fierce flame storm that burns everything around the caster.

“Ugh?!”

Mana was sucked out at an unbearable level.

It was to the point where he momentarily lost his balance.

‘Almost all my mana is gone!’

But the effect was certain.

“What is that?”

Gerard, who was casting a Shield on his allies from the rear, witnessed a giant tornado that had formed in the air.

The vortex grew larger and larger, then suddenly became engulfed in flames and began to burn everything around it.

“Reinard, fight with your mana in mind!”

“That is not my magic.”

“What?”

Kwoooosh!

Everything that touched the storm of fire turned to ash.

Hellmorphs, infected trees, membranes, everything without exception.

Before long, the vortex, which had sucked in its limit, exploded and scattered sparks in all directions.

“I burned it! I burned a lot!”

Por licked his lips and spun around in the air.

Artier barely caught his breath and stood up.

“Haa…”

“What?”

“No, you did well…”

You could have told me before using something like this!

The words rose up to his throat.

But what could he do? It was Artier who had given permission, and the karma was also Artier’s.

“Can you control your power a bit now?”

“Power? Control?”

Por kept tilting his head.

The atmosphere was turning strange.

Artier hastily added an explanation.

“Just use relatively weak techniques.”

“Then I can’t burn everything. I don’t want to!”

“What do you mean you don’t want to? Por, wait a minute!”

Before Artier could stop him further, Por flew back into the enemy lines.

Artier, who confirmed his rapidly depleting mana, hastily took out a mana potion from his inventory.

What on earth is going on?

It’s because the master allowed him to burn everything at the very beginning.

What? That was a metaphorical expression.

Spirits take human language literally. Moreover, fire spirits are stubborn. He probably won’t stop until he has truly destroyed all the Hellmorphs here.

Artier’s complexion grew paler and paler as he listened to Collie’s thoughts.

It was because it wasn’t an amount that could be handled with just one potion.

“Por, come back!”

“I don’t want to!”

[Por uses a skill.]

Fire Bolt (Lv.1): Fires a blazing flame orb.

Bang! Bang!

Por flew around, shooting flames in all directions.

A round hole was formed where the flames had exploded.

[Por uses a skill.]

Fire Wave (Lv.1): Creates a wave of fire that burns enemies in front and reduces their defense.

Fwoooosh!

As Por set his four paws on the ground, a wave of lava erupted from the ground and engulfed the Hellmorphs.

‘My mana…!’

Artier barely held on to his dizzying mind.

There was really not much mana left.

Even the mana that protected his mouth was gradually weakening.

“Damn it! Por, I said come back!”

Artier shouted harshly as he felt the toxic gas approaching.

Then, the divine power that had been stirring within him moved for the first time.

“Huh?”

Por’s body, which had been running wild with excitement, stiffened.

Then, just like when he first appeared, he flickered out and disappeared.

What on earth did you do?

As Collie’s thoughts were heard, Artier raised his head.

“…Huh?”

The presence of Por that he had felt just before could not be felt anywhere.

What did I just do?

The master just forcibly cut off Por’s summon. Is that alright? There must have been a backlash on your body.

Backlash? I’m fine.

Artier immediately checked his body.

The stirring divine power had returned to its original place.

His mana was still at a pittance, but what was certain was that his body did not hurt.

Is that so? Still, please be careful from next time.

Alright.

Artier touched his head and looked ahead.

Over there… was literally a sea of fire.

The remaining Hellmorphs were fleeing after grasping the situation on the battlefield.

“Heh…”

To think that all this was the work of one spirit.

Artier let out a hollow laugh and began to descend the hill.

“Artier!”

The party, which still had a bewildered expression, greeted Artier very warmly when he appeared.

“What was that cat just now? Was that you?”

“What happened under the lake?”

“Are you okay? Are you alright?”

A flood of questions in an instant.

Artier smiled and did what he had to do first.

“I’ll explain later. What’s the current situation?”

“We couldn’t find two people.”

“…Who?”

“Angelina and Vince.”

Angelina was the healer of Reinard’s party.

And Vince was the name of the warrior who used a two-handed sword.

‘To lose two people here.’

“Have you searched for them?”

“We did. But the more we widened the radius, the more Hellmorphs appeared.”

“Communication?”

“Communication in the area has started to be jammed. It’s now impossible to confirm their life or death through communication.”

“…”

Everyone’s expression was not good.

At that time, when only silence occupied the surroundings, it was surprisingly Reinard who opened his mouth first.

“We must continue to advance towards the ruins.”

“Are you sure? They’re your party members.”

“If they were in a crisis, they would have used Holy Magic. It’s the most effective way to annihilate the enemy while revealing their location.”

But during their search, Holy Magic was not used anywhere.

Reinard seemed to have already made a decision in his heart.

“The golden time has already passed. If we delay any longer, it will affect the entire expedition.”

“…”

“We can only hope that they will join us directly, like you, Leader.”

Artier looked at the others.

Reinard’s party members seemed to have a lot to say.

But even as they clenched their fists, they did not defy his words until the end.

“Leader, what he said is right.”

“Reinard always talks like crap… but he’s rational.”

“Then let’s move to the ruins.”

Far away, a giant spire, presumed to be the ruins, could be seen.

Just a little further to go.

Everyone took one last look at the ruined surroundings and slowly began to move forward.

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