Volume 1 Chapter 12 Budding Talent
Five days have passed since we decided to take the promotion exam.
With the exam just 2 days away...
Rose and I were sweating bullets.
[Job Class] Apprentice Warrior
[Level] 9
[Skills] -
[Magic] -
[Divine Blessing]
- Strength: E140
- Agility: F90
- Resilience: E125
- Magic: F22
- Holy Power: F22
"My level isn't going up at all..."
"Y-Yeah..."
I had said all those confident things to Freesia, but since that day, she has only managed to level up twice.
On the first day of training, she had leveled up 4 times in just one day.
With the promotion exam fast approaching, our anxiety was reaching its peak.
"W-Why is my level so hard to increase?"
"Um, well, that's..."
I don't know.
I really have no idea why Rose's growth is so slow.
It's not like we slacked off on monster hunting these past 5 days.
In fact, the number of monsters she has defeated has been increasing day by day.
Yet, despite that, leveling up has become increasingly difficult.
Five days ago, she leveled up to "Level 8," and 3 days ago, she finally reached "Level 9.".
Since then, no matter how many forest monsters we take down, her level just won't budge.
It's as if there's a thick wall right before Level 10.
The Trainer's support skills should be helping, so why is her growth stalled like this?.
Plus, she still haven't manifested any skills or magic.
What is going on with this job class?
"Should we change the monsters we're hunting? We've fought most of the monsters in this forest already, and I don't think I'll get any divine growth points for first-time hunts..."
"..."
Changing our target monsters.
I thought about that too, but honestly, it doesn't seem very realistic.
The first hunt at the divine growth point will definitely lead to a big leap in growth.
But the reality is, there aren't any suitable monsters around here.
With Rose's current strength, it's possible to safely hunt, and we need a monster that's not too weak but gives a decent amount of divine growth points.
In my memory, there's no such convenient monster.
"...No."
It's not that there aren't any, maybe.
But if we were to hunt that monster, we'd run into some pretty annoying problems.
Honestly, I'd like to avoid that...
"Even though I'm getting help from Mr. Roezé, why am I..."
"..."
...Forget it, I can't hesitate now.
If there's a chance for Rose to grow, I'll deal with a little hassle.
I promised to look after her until she grows to a certain point.
Plus, I have a promise with Freesia too.
I steeled myself and proposed to Rose.
"Alright, it might be a bit dangerous, but let's try targeting a different monster like you said."
"A different monster? What kind of monster is that?"
"I'll explain as we go."
Rose and I made our way deeper into the forest.
Eventually, as the leaves on the branches started changing from green to a yellowish hue, Rose spoke up nervously.
"Um, um, I was told at the guild not to go past those yellow-leaved trees..."
"That's right. Beyond here, there are many monsters in the depths of the forest that beginner adventurers can't handle, so you're advised to stay away."
"Then, then why..."
I smiled and replied.
"Because the target monster is hiding up ahead."
"Huh?"
"Sure, there are many monsters in the depths of the forest that beginner adventurers can't defeat, but there are also some that can be hunted if you handle them properly. Among them, the Emperor Ant we're going to take down now doesn't require complicated tactics and gives a huge amount of divine growth points, so it should really help Rose grow."
"Is there really such a monster?"
A giant ant monster──Emperor Ant.
It hides in a cave deep in the forest, preferring to feast on humans and weaker monsters.
In the past, there were reports of rookie adventurers getting kidnapped and becoming victims after venturing deep into the woods, but now it seems the guild has proper training in place, and there are hardly any incidents anymore.
However, many clueless civilians still wander into the forest and end up in trouble, so it's still classified as a monster that needs to be hunted.
This time, we're targeting that kind of monster.
After about 2 hours of making our way deeper into the forest, we finally arrived at the nest of the Emperor Ant.
A large rock, hidden among the trees, has a hole in the center, making it look like a cave.
I keep an eye on that hole from a nearby bush and share our strategy before we charge in.
"The Emperor Ant mainly attacks with its powerful jaws and acid from its abdomen. Each hit is pretty lethal, but if you watch closely, dodging should be easy."
"If you watch closely..."
I wait for Rose to repeat that before continuing.
"Also, be careful of its tough body. Even with weapon enhancement magic, I doubt you can cut through it with a sword. But there's one thing: its joints are softer, so if you aim for those when attacking, it'll be easier to fight."
"The joints..."
I felt like if I went on too long, it wouldn't stick, so I decided to keep it short.
"Dodge by watching! Attack the joints! If you stick to these two things, even you, Rose, can take it down. If you feel okay, I'd like you to challenge the Emperor Ant."
"Y-yes. I'm okay."
Rose nodded firmly.
Seeing her full of determination made me feel relieved, and I decided to share the most important thing last.
"There's one more thing I need to tell you..."
"W-what is it?"
"Maybe when the fight starts, monsters called strain ants will come out from all over the nest. They're the ones that protect the Emperor Ant, but I'll handle all of them, so you just focus on your own opponent, okay?"
"...O-Okay, I got it."
I thought I needed to get pumped up too, so I slapped my cheeks with both hands.
Then, I raised my right hand towards myself and my left hand towards Rose, chanting.
"[All Vision]."
A support magic for visual enhancement.
With this, I can see in the dark even without torches.
It also helps maintain clear vision underwater or in bad weather, making it surprisingly useful in many situations.
With Rose showing a fresh reaction of "Oh," I stepped into the cave.
Inside, it looked like a cave carved out of a giant rock.
Basically, it was a winding path, but there were some raised parts in the dirt on the ground, making it bumpy in places.
As I carefully made my way along that path, I eventually spotted an open area ahead.
"Rose."
I urged Rose to proceed more cautiously and crouched down to peek at the square.
In the center of the square, a huge ant was devouring what seemed to be a Flare Bambi it had caught outside the nest.
At the gruesome sight, Rose couldn't help but grimace, "Ugh.".
I thought to myself how glad I was that it wasn't a human being eaten, and I spoke to Rose in a hushed voice.
"That's the Emperor Ant, the master of this nest. I'll charge into the square with you, so don't hesitate to attack it."
"Y-Yes. I'll give it a try."
I had planned to decide whether to challenge it after actually seeing the monster.
But looking at Rose, it seemed like she wouldn't freeze up in fear.
To encourage her, I cast as much support magic on her as I could.
I also used the minimum amount of magic on myself to prepare, and finally, we were ready to start the hunt for the Emperor Ant.
"Alright, let's go!"
With that shout as a signal, we both jumped into the square at the same time.
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