Chapter 14

The characters and the writing are all over the place.

Writing a novel is really difficult.

The roaring flames enveloped the rock wolves within the area.

The rock wolves, engulfed in fire, screamed and ran around, collapsing one after another in the flames. Some managed to escape from the flames, but they were still on fire and were quickly dispatched by Node and Elsa.

The armor of the rock wolves was softer than expected, unlike the sensation from previous battles.

The armor, similar to a burning rock, easily allowed the steel blade to penetrate.

"Oh, what a waste..."

"Life is precious, after all..."

The armor of the rock wolves, while thick and impenetrable to ordinary blades, was weak against fire and quickly lost its hardness when burned.

This is why rock wolves are designated for promotion requests to the Jade Rank, the second-lowest rank of adventurers.

An adventurer's strength is not measured solely by their skill with swords or spears. What is important is the ability to take the necessary actions to achieve their goals.

For example, some monsters are completely immune to physical attacks—blows or slashes. On the other hand, such enemies are often very weak to magical attacks.

When facing such enemies, an adventurer who blindly engages in combat is not suitable for the request.

Avoiding combat or selecting appropriate tactics, and gathering the necessary information in advance, are essential.

Therefore, the promotion request to the Jade Rank, like the Slate Rank requests, cannot be easily overcome by brute force. On the other hand, the designated task is to slay monsters that can be easily defeated if properly researched.

However,

"Oh... The fur of the rock wolves can be sold for a decent price..."

In the case of rock wolves, using their weakness to fire burns the fur, which is a valuable material. No one wants burned wolf fur, and the profit from selling the materials for the bounty is lost.

The armor of the rock wolves, while weak to fire in human combat, can be made somewhat fire-resistant with special treatment and has a certain demand as armor material.

Node had seen a soldier, a colleague of his father, wearing rock wolf armor.

It is treated as cheap armor, and the fur material does not fetch a high price, but it can add up if enough is collected.

The number of rock wolves burning in front of them is about the same as the number Node and his companions have skinned so far.

If they collected all the fur, it would exceed the reward for a Slate Rank request.

"Did you really think you could win against that many, Node? I didn't."

"......"

When asked this, Node had no answer.

Money can only be earned if one is alive, and Node cannot afford to be seriously injured. He needed to ensure victory.

For this reason, even if it meant a loss, he prepared a trap to set the wolf pack on fire to complete the request and return alive.

He bought several barrels of alchemical oil and connected them to a fire-starting magical device, burying them underground.

The armor of the rock wolves is made of hardened hair, which is highly flammable.

The amount of alchemical oil needed to spread a wide area of fire is quite expensive, so he used ordinary oil as well, depleting his funds to prepare it.

He hoped that with Elsa's assistance, they could defeat the wolves without using the trap, but unfortunately, reality was not that kind.

Having formed a connection with the excellent adventurer Elsa and successfully being promoted to the Jade Rank, Node considered this a good outcome.

"...Node?"

"Yeah, I understand."

Elsa spoke to Node in a tone that seemed to say, "Are you okay?" Node understood what she meant, even if she didn't explicitly say it.

The fire from the alchemical oil was weakening and about to die out.

Most of the rock wolves were burned, but not all of them were defeated.

In front of them were a few lucky rock wolves that had not been set on fire and a few armored wolves whose armor was still burning but showed a will to fight.

"Let's do it."

"Yes, I'll coordinate."

The battle was nearing its end.

§

The pack of rock wolves was almost completely wiped out.

Only four rock wolves and an injured armored wolf remained.

The armored wolf's armor was mostly burned, but it seemed to have higher fire resistance than the rock wolves.

However, its body was charred in many places, and its breathing was labored.

It was clear that it had lost most of its vitality.

Still, it was facing Node and his companions, befitting its role as the leader of the rock wolves.

Node tightened his focus and began the final battle.

First, Node attacked.

He held his shield without a gap and made a minimal movement to feint an attack.

The armored wolf and one of the rock wolves targeted Node, taking advantage of the opening.

A powerful impact, like colliding with a bull, hit Node. Despite being burned by the flames, the armored wolf still had considerable strength.

However, this attack was provoked by Node.

Node's attack was a feint, and his center of gravity was on his shield for defense. As expected, the armored wolf's charge was blocked by the shield. The other rock wolf was being kept at bay by Node's sword.

During this, Elsa quickly dispatched one of the rock wolves. There were now three remaining.

The armored wolf, realizing its disadvantage, tried to regroup with the remaining rock wolves. But Node attacked again, preventing it from moving.

The armored wolf was forced to face Node.

Perhaps it thought, "I'll defeat this human first," and attacked Node again.

This time, the attack came from the armored wolf, and the coordinated attack with the subordinate rock wolves indeed inflicted damage on Node.

"......Gah!?"

The second attack on Node was a charge, accompanied by a bite from one of the rock wolves.

The impact from the charge, which came a split second earlier, slowed Node's reaction.

Taking advantage of this, the subordinate rock wolf aimed to sink its fangs into Node's neck.

Node shielded his vital areas with his arm.

The rock wolf's fangs pierced the hard leather armor on Node's sword-wielding arm.

The rock wolf's powerful jaws, honed by experience, easily penetrated the armor.

The pain almost made Node drop his sword, but he endured.

He tensed his muscles, pushing back the fangs, and swung his arm.

The trajectory, aimed at the armored wolf behind the shield, was altered when the rock wolf opened its mouth at the last moment, avoiding the collision.

Instead,

"Yip!?"

The steel spike pierced the rock wolf, which was trying to land after twisting its body in mid-air.

"Node, are you okay?"

"Ugh... I'm fine, it didn't break. The chainmail stopped it."

Elsa had dispatched the rock wolf that Node had separated. There were no more subordinates.

Grateful for the glint of metal under the broken hard leather gauntlet, Node moved his arm to check its condition.

He was fine. He could still hold his sword.

"Alright... Are you ready?"

Two pairs of eyes pierced the armored wolf.

§

After the battle, Node and his companions moved through the rocky hills again, beginning to skin the remaining rock wolves.

They buried the bodies to prevent decay, erasing all traces of the rock wolves from the hills.

The pack of rock wolves was annihilated, leaving only Node and Elsa on the battlefield.

Before burying them, they counted the total number of rock wolves, which, combined with those they had slain earlier, reached eighty-two.

"There were so many..."

Elsa's words.

Node agreed. How many were mentioned in the request? He should ask the guild staff when they return. Additional rewards should be expected.

There was a little over a day until the carriage from the Adventurer's Guild, which they had requested in advance, arrived.

They had already collected the parts needed to prove the slayings and the materials they could skin.

To offset the deficit from the alchemical oil, Node decided to gather more materials.

Since it was a mountainous area, he couldn't find herbs, but he managed to collect a few minerals. The amount wasn't much, but it should bring in some money.

With this, Node and Elsa set off on their return to the capital.

On the way, Node continued to look for items with monetary value, determined not to miss even a single copper coin.

The carriage, which had been crowded with barrels of alchemical oil on the way there, was now crowded with Node's collected materials and rock wolf fur, but neither Node nor Elsa felt uncomfortable, despite the tighter space.

After five days, they returned to the capital, just as on the way there.

§

At the Adventurer's Guild, they completed the report of the successful request.

At this time, Elsa, who seemed to be quite angry about the much larger number of rock wolves and the armored wolf, complained to the staff.

Her anger, like her red hair, burned fiercely, and Node had no chance to intervene.

"Hmm, we did it."

Elsa was pleased, having received additional rewards from the Adventurer's Guild on top of the promised reward.

Combined with the rock wolf fur they had skinned, the total reward was quite substantial.

Even after deducting the cost of the trap, there was a significant profit.

And...

Around Node and Elsa's necks, new guild cards were visible.

The guild cards for Jade Rank adventurers.

Unlike the slightly rough texture of the Slate Rank cards, the surface of the milky white stone was smooth and reflected the sunlight, shining brightly.

Apart from the texture, everything else was the same, but Node had advanced one more rank as an adventurer.

He savored the feeling.

"Hey, Node, I have a proposal..."

Elsa, with her milky white guild card hanging from her chest under her red hair, asked.

"What is it?"

Node encouraged her to continue.

"About the materials from the armored wolf, are you willing to sell them to me?"

The armored wolf, despite being burned by Node's fire trap, had left some of its armor intact.

Even so, the armored wolf was large, and the amount of armor, even a part, was sufficient for armor material.

They had agreed to a 50:50 split of the materials before the mission. They had already divided the request rewards and the rock wolf materials.

The only remaining materials were from the armored wolf.

The materials from the armored wolf, except for their fire resistance, had superior defensive properties compared to the hard leather armor they were currently wearing. If they could make such equipment, it would make Jade Rank requests easier.

Unfortunately, due to the fire trap, much of the armor had burned away, leaving only enough for one set of armor.

If they split it, they could only make a few pieces of equipment. If one of them took it all, they could make a complete set of high-quality equipment.

Node needed money more than equipment at the moment.

Elsa wanted the equipment, and Node wanted to secure money.

Their desires were different.

Node happily accepted Elsa's proposal.

§

"Alec"

After leaving the Adventurer's Guild, Node hurried home.

The Felis residence, where he had not been for about two weeks, welcomed him as usual.

After removing his armor, Node went to find Alec, the butler, as directed by a maid.

"Welcome back, Master Node."

Alec greeted him respectfully. Node handed him a leather bag.

The heavy bag contained silver coins.

"Check it, just to be sure. It should have the amount you asked for."

"I'm tired, so I'll rest a bit." With that, Node left Alec's room quickly.

Alec, holding the leather bag carefully with both hands, bowed deeply. His head remained bowed even after Node left the room.

Alec's eyes were fixed on the bandage visible under the sleeve of Node's right arm.