Chapter 62

The remains of the Death-Armed One vaporized, slowly dissipating into nothingness.

I let out a sigh of relief and raised my sword in front of my face.

"〈Self-Sacrifice〉... Released."

The red and bluish-white light that enveloped my body disappeared. I could feel my defenses returning.

"R-Really, we managed to defeat it, Elma! Even though it was so much higher level than us...! The experience points were insane!"

Luze ran over to me.

"I'd rather not have to fight like this, gambling everything on the line, if I can help it."

I replied with a wry smile.

"Hehe... When that centipede woke up and had that thick carapace, I really didn't know what would happen. But, as expected, you managed to win in the end, Elma!"

"...No, I really am sorry. This kind of existence evolution shouldn't have happened here."

I scratched my forehead, feeling guilty. The fact that we won this time was largely due to Luze's efforts. I had her take quite a risk. It was only because of her performance in the Embryo battle that I felt confident enough to rely on her.

"N-No, that's not what I meant! I wasn't trying to blame you or anything! Besides, adventurers aren't supposed to always seek safety, right?"

Luze waved her hands in front of her, trying to smooth things over.

"By the way, that last strike was incredibly powerful! That huge Death-Armed One was taken down in an instant!"

She quickly changed the subject, perhaps to ease my mind.

"〈Self-Sacrifice〉 is powerful, but it leaves a big opening..."

The heavy knight's 〈Self-Sacrifice〉 is strong, but the significant drop in defense is painful. The continuous MP consumption and the large openings when activating and deactivating it, combined with the defense reduction, make it a rather fatal flaw.

My HP was already below 20%, so even a small amount of damage could have been fatal. The fact that I could die easily from stray attacks was not good for my heart. My reliance on 〈Life Shield〉 was also stripped away, so any single mistake could have cost me my life.

"I was only able to attack because Luze took care of the stun. I don't think I want to use this skill too aggressively with my current stats. But the ridiculous power it provides can be useful for intimidation."

When 〈Rampaging Dragon at the Brink of Death〉 and 〈Self-Sacrifice〉 are combined, the attack power increases to nearly six times its original level. It could be useful for one-shot tricks or intimidation.

【You have obtained the title 〈Nightmare Slayer〉.】

I received a title.

"〈Nightmare Slayer〉...? What does this title mean...?"

Luze also seemed to have received it. She was checking her 〈Status〉.

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〈Nightmare Slayer〉 [Title]

【Lv: 70】 or higher evolved 〈Lord of Dreams〉 defeated.

+7% attack power against 〈Lord of Dreams〉.

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It's a boss-specific title. Although we got involved in a troublesome situation, it's not a title that can be easily obtained by targeting existence evolution, so it's a valuable acquisition.

In 〈Magic World〉, to become stronger, you need to steadily gain experience points while also defeating enemies that are higher level at some point. Titles that affect such powerful enemies are very helpful in this regard.

"Still, it's good to celebrate our safety, but we need to properly recover the magic stone as well."

The 〈Dream Hole〉, having lost its master, began to collapse. We needed to collect what we could before it was too late.

"After all, it's a 【Lv: 75】 magic stone. It's worth four million gold."

"Four million gold!? From just one magic stone!?"

Luze's voice rose in surprise. After all, at our current level, this was a monster we would never normally challenge.

The Mistral Golem, which we barely managed to defeat, was 【Lv: 55】, and the master of the Centipede Pit, which we only tackled because we had a strategy, was 【Lv: 60】. And this Death-Armed One was an astonishing 【Lv: 75】. The rewards were just as massive as the experience points.

Luze and I approached the remains of the Death-Armed One to search for the magic stone. Given its massive size, it wasn't easy to find, even as it rapidly vaporized.

"There... it is."

I picked up the earth attribute magic stone from the Death-Armed One. The objective was successfully recovered. It's amazing how four million gold can be obtained so easily.

Just then, the 〈Dream Hole〉 began to shake violently, and cracks started to spread across the floor and walls. It was a sign that the 〈Dream Hole〉 was about to disappear.

"E-Elma! This... this! I found it! It's... it's incredible!"

Luze ran straight towards me.

"What is it, Luze? If it's the magic stone, I already found it..."

Luze suddenly held up something in her hand. It was a knife, with a purple blade that glowed ominously.

"It's a drop item from the Death-Armed One!"

Another drop... Luze really does manage to recover items with low drop rates as if it's nothing.

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〈Poison Centipede's Dagger〉 [Recommended Level: 70]

【Attack Power: +28】

【Market Value: 28 million gold】

A dagger imbued with the centipede's potent venom. In addition to high attack power, it occasionally poisons enemies.

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The 〈Poison Centipede's Dagger〉... It was the most valuable item we had ever obtained. Its performance was also quite formidable. It's impressive that Luze managed to recover the drop item from the enhanced 〈Lord of Dreams〉.

The occurrence rate of such probability effects is influenced by luck. Depending on the compatibility, if it can consistently apply poison, it can greatly expand the winning strategies against monsters. It can also be used to increase the number of strikes with 〈Acrobatic Combo〉 to forcibly apply poison, making it quite compatible with Luze.

"The recommended level is a bit high, but... if we can get something like this, the minerals we collected weren't necessary..."

I chuckled and muttered.

"What should we do, Elma! This is worth 28 million gold! It's even more valuable than the 〈Shining Lanna's Decorative Sword〉! Isn't it too much to bring something like this back? Isn't it bad luck or something? Maybe we should leave it behind?"

"Calm down, Luze! Stay calm! You're panicking!"

I hurriedly tried to calm Luze down.

While we were arguing, the collapse of the 〈Dream Hole〉 continued. The fallen rocks thinned and disappeared, and the ceiling and walls were enveloped in white light.

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(2021/6/17)