Chapter 109: Watch It and Block It (3)
While I was blocking the side walls breach, I noticed the main gates defenses were breached and immediately sprang into action.
First, I used the Memorize skill imbued in the Root weapon to cast Wind Force and drove it deep into the ground.
Although Wind Force was a spell with a short casting time and could be used directly, I purposely went through Memorize because,
It avoids the rule penalty that way.
The intent was to make the system recognize that the Root not I was casting the spell, thereby avoiding the [Close Combat] rule penalty.
Having temporarily secured the side walls defense, I approached Song Cheon-hye to help buy her time so she could cast a large-scale spell.
Of course, I had another purpose in coming here beside just inflicting massive damage on the Beheader Goblin.
I need to copy her trait.
Copy-Trait [2/2]
1. Elemental Resistance (S)
2. Sovereigns Crown
The Sovereigns Crown.
It was a trait every mage wanted to have.
The trait that greatly contributed to Song Cheon-hye being called a mana monster was also this one.
Like the [Blessing of the West Wind] I had learned, it didnt have a rank
And its effects included a bonus to mana-type skills and traits, along with reduced mana consumption.
As soon as I copied this trait, my [Core] which had been stuck at C-rank, instantly advanced to C+. Since the number of mana-type skills would continue to increase, this would be extremely beneficial in the long term.
The reason I had encouraged Song Cheon-hye to use large-scale magic was to make the activation of this trait more noticeable.
After all, even for a mana monster, casting a powerful spell like [Summon Thunderstorm] would consume a significant amount of mana.
As expected, while Song Cheon-hye was assembling a large spell and pumping it full of mana, I was able to copy the blue crown that appeared above her head.
This weeks quest is well completed as well.
[Side Quest: 6th Week Strategy Battle]
Objective: Protect the Statue of the Goddess
Deadline: ~Sunday midnight
Reward: Varies based on the remaining health (93/100%)
This weeks side quest was also completed with the highest reward condition of over 90%.
[Material Selection (C)]
Acquire your desired C-rank material.
Though there was no immediate need for it, the future was filled with potential items to create, whether they be equipment or consumables.
Using material selection would save the effort of having to search for that material. This was a solid advantage because the more you have, the better.
That concludes this week.
If there was an unexpected gain
It came from the bet with Song Cheon-hye, where the wish tickets I now had multiplied into three.
Alright, lets bet. But if you fail to reach 90%, lets make it two?
When she countered with that proposal, I wondered what she was thinking.
She must have been certain I couldnt achieve a 90% success rate, which is why she made such an offer, but was her confidence strong enough to raise the stakes?
Or was it actually because she was like a genie from a lamp that was obligated to grant exactly three wishes?
It was impossible to tell.
***
The disciplinary committee room was quiet.
It seemed that everyone had simultaneously stepped out.
Song Cheon-hye was alone and she continued to review the documents she had been processing the day before, but she soon set them aside.
Then she walked over to the sofa and sat down demurely.
.
As Song Cheon-hye leaned back against the sofa and stared blankly ahead, she slipped down and suddenly burst out,
Uwaaah! Why did I do that! Why did I do that! Why! Why did I do that!
She began to flail her arms and legs around.
The joy of having finished the defense strategy battle with excellent results had long been buried.
She had given away three wish tickets after all.
And to no one else but Kim Ho!
Up until the start of the strategy battle, she was convinced she would definitely win the bet.
It made no sense for a steady 70% record maintained throughout the week to suddenly jump by 20%.
That was her oversight.
She hadnt considered that the sly man, Kim Ho, might also have his own certainty in making the bet.
Moreover, it wasnt just about losing the bet
What confidence did I have to bet two wish tickets in one go?
She herself couldnt fathom why she had taken such an action.
As the image of herself making the counter-proposal and Kim Hos surprised look surfaced, Song Cheon-hyes flailing became even more intense.
If she had a blanket, she would have kicked it until it had holes in it. Though this was not the dormitory but the disciplinary committee room.
She worried that if she remembered this again before going to sleep tonight, she might actually kick a hole through something.
As Song Cheon-hye continued to repeat Why did I do that like a parrot,
Why did I do that! Why! Why did I do
Creaaak
Suddenly, a wooden door appeared on one side of the disciplinary committee room.
Song Cheon-hye swiftly rose from the sofa, straightened her slightly disheveled clothes, and stood upright.
She then politely bowed her head to Kwak Seung-jae who entered through the wooden door.
Youve arrived, senior-nim.
Kwak Seung-jae nodded slightly in response and then walked across the disciplinary committee room.
Song Cheon-hye kept glancing sideways while gauging the situation.
Did he hear that just now? He couldnt have, could he? He must not have heard it.
Kwak Seung-jae poured himself a cup of coffee from the coffee pot, settled into a sofa, and took a sip or two before he finally spoke.
So, tell me. Why did you do that?
!!
He had heard everything!
Song Cheon-hyes face turned bright red in an instant.
As she stood there without knowing what to do with her flushed face, Kwak Seung-jae took another sip of his coffee and added calmly,
It was a joke.
Song Cheon-hye felt completely deflated.
Somehow, when this utterly serious senior said it, the joke didnt sound much like a joke.
Fortunately, the awkward atmosphere didnt last long thanks to Kwak Seung-jae changing the subject first.
You came early. Have you finished all your matches?
Yes, I submitted my score today.
Kwak Seung-jae appeared thoughtful for a moment before asking another question.
Your partner was Kim Ho, right?
Yes, just for this week.
Anything unusual?
Although there was no confirmation that Kim Ho was the masked individual who had broken into the storage facility, Kwak Seung-jae found many aspects of the situation suspicious.
Even though he had the skills to play a perfect game against a golem refined by a third-year club president, he had surprisingly little public exposure.
Such suspicions became stronger when Kim Ho and some members of the thieves club were arrested in the underground levels and light burn marks were discovered on his hands.
Therefore, the task of keeping an eye on Kim Ho was given to Song Cheon-hye who was a member of the disciplinary committee and his classmate.
By coincidence, they were also paired in the same mentoring group which provided her with an opportunity to observe him more closely, and today an additional unusual detail emerged.
He changed his weapon.
A weapon I recall he didnt have one before.
Kim Hos weapon, as recorded in the replay, was an E-rank Earth staff.
Its performance was so poor that it was hardly distinguishable from a wooden stick.
Eventually, he seemed so inconvenienced by it that he often went about unarmed.
Considering Kim Ho was a mage, the fact that he had no decent magical tools was quite strange, but today he suddenly produced a high-quality spear-like weapon and used it.
Of course, such a high-quality item hadnt just fallen from the sky,
and Song Cheon-hye had a suspicion.
The duel with the Emerald Magic Tower had a [Crafting VIP Ticket] at stake. He seems to have used that.
Thats very likely.
Ill inquire with the Blacksmithing club.
If the blacksmiths workshop had crafted that spear, they likely kept records of which metals were used.
Knowing this could significantly narrow down which dungeons Kim Ho might have entered to obtain the required metal.
For example, the dungeons for acquiring [Black Iron] and [Mithril] were different.
However, Kwak Seung-jae was somewhat skeptical.
Its likely they wont disclose important information.
Why not?
Theres no justification.
Although they are just a club, they are craftsmen nonetheless.
Kim Ho hadnt done anything wrong, nor was there any issue with the spear, so there was no reason for them to divulge information about their client.
Pressuring such craftsmen for information was inappropriate, and even if pressured, they were unlikely to budge.
This was why the blacksmithing club held a great standing at the Dragon Slayer Academy.
Its still worth trying. However, if they refuse, we must withdraw politely without causing offense.
Ill be careful.
Ive circulated an official notice about the Inferno Fist matter to all the clubs.
The official notice did not directly mention the Inferno Fist, but it stated that if students noticed anything suspicious during their dungeon raids, they should report it to the student disciplinary committee.
By next weeks dungeon raids, we should see some results one way or another.
If they used the day Kim Ho and Dang Gyu-youngs group were caught in the underground levels as a marker,
Then many of the dungeons that had been up for bid before that day had already been conquered this week.
On the other hand, there were a lot of dungeons that were still being prepared even though they had been bid for.
This was because students had to prepare thoroughly as their lives were at stake, and their schedules had to be adjusted taking into account academic and club schedules.
But in two weeks, during the next raid week, all the dungeons that had been bid on would be conquered.
Of course, there was no guarantee that they would get the results they wanted.
The dungeon Kim Ho and Dang Gyu-youngs group entered might not be related to those that were bid on, and even if something suspicious was found, the other party could act first to cover it up.
Well have to take more proactive actions then.
***
On a weekend morning.
While I was waiting at the meeting place near the dormitory, I saw Seo Ye-in walking slowly from a distance toward me.
When I waved my hand, Seo Ye-in also approached and waved her hand gently.
When she got closer to a certain distance, I asked in a playful tone.
Shall we go, miss?
Mhmm.
To the downtown area.
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