Chapter 445 - 358: Rotten Wood, Bronze, Gold

Chapter 445: Chapter 358: Rotten Wood, Bronze, Gold

"Before, when you put your hand on my chest to use your Healing Skill..."

Gray recalled, "It felt so warm and comfortable. Sometimes I had to stop myself from moaning..."

"Don’t make healing sound so suggestive," Zelir said with a frown.

He thought back on the Casting process.

’The remotely cast Healing Skill is a bit weak...’

’As the Healing Energy gathers at the tip of the staff, it swells and becomes more and more unstable.’

’It’s like a bubble being constantly inflated.’

’I have to infuse it carefully, little by little, pushing it to its limit.’

’I probably launched it just now before expanding the Healing Energy to its maximum, which is why the effect was weaker.’

’Hmm... I still need to practice more!’

The hit Gray had taken wasn’t that severe.

Although the Healing Skill’s effect was a little lackluster, it was still enough to quickly get him back on his feet.

Gray rolled his shoulders, feeling full of energy from head to toe.

With a loud roar, he charged forward again.

"Marcus! I, Gray, am going to smash your turtle shell today!"

"Come and try it!"

"Zelir, give me an amplification!"

"You got it!"

"Wait a minute... The two of you are cheating!"

...

「Nightfall.」

A huge, silver moon climbed above the treetops.

The brilliant, starry night sky was sliced into long, narrow strips by the dense canopy.

The nights at the Heart of the Emerald Residence were always lively.

The main hall was brightly lit, and the aroma of food wafted through the air.

As waiters bustled back and forth, merchants and Adventurers from all over the country chatted and laughed loudly over dinner.

"Your food is all here. Please enjoy your meal."

The waiter put away his tray, bowed slightly, and withdrew.

The four members of the party sat at a large, round table the innkeeper had specially reserved for them.

Zelir and Valles were doing fine, enjoying the delicious food.

Gray and Marcus, however, were both looking a bit bruised and swollen.

Gray’s blonde hair was messier than usual, and he had a black eye.

Marcus’s right cheek was a little swollen, and there was a red mark on his philtrum—clear evidence he’d gotten a bloody nose.

It had to be said that when two people were of similar strength, Amplification Magic was truly capable of turning the tide of battle.

During their spar that afternoon, after receiving the buff from Zelir’s Gift of Barbaric Strength, Gray had actually managed to catch Marcus’s thrusting Short Spear with his bare hands and prevent him from pulling it back.

Marcus yanked on the Short Spear twice but couldn’t pull it from Gray’s grasp.

Neither was willing to back down, and they were locked in a stalemate.

Gray ended up tossing aside his training Longsword, and Marcus threw down his Iron Shield. The two of them began a tug-of-war, wrestling over the Short Spear.

A pure contest of Power.

Then, no one knew who threw the first punch, but the two of them ended up grappling with each other.

They tumbled around on the sandy ground, trading blows back and forth with great enthusiasm.

They certainly had plenty of fighting spirit.

Of course...

In the end, it was Zelir’s Magic Power that had to be spent healing their injuries.

"I won. Marcus has more marks on his face than I do," Gray argued righteously.

"That’s because you had Zelir’s amplification. You lost," Marcus shot Gray a sidelong glance.

"Who told you to be a turtle... I’ll use an Iron Shield next time, too!"

"I can’t believe you two..."

Zelir sighed and shook his head.

The innkeeper seemed to have learned of Zelir’s status as a Middle Level Mage.

Not only did he always reserve a good table for them, but he had also given special instructions to the kitchen. The quality and portions of the dishes they were served looked better than those at other tables.

From honey-glazed roasted ribs and creamy mushroom soup to salt-and-pepper chicken nuggets and huge slabs of grilled steak.

The dishes looked, smelled, and tasted incredible; it was enough to make anyone’s mouth water.

After a full day of tumbling and fighting on the training grounds, they were all famished, and the party members dug right in.

They didn’t even bother with conversation. The only sound was the CLINK-CLANK of knives and forks as they quickly devoured the food in front of them.

"URP..."

Marcus let out a satisfied burp and tilted his head back, downing the last of the ale in his mug.

"Everyone should be well-rested by now, right?"

"Zelir, how are you feeling? Are there still any aftereffects from the Magic Power exhaustion?"

"Yeah, I’m completely recovered." Zelir put down his knife and fork and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"That’s good."

Marcus nodded, his expression turning serious.

"Then we should probably head out to explore the ruins in the next day or two."

"Mhm." Valles nodded in agreement as well.

Unbeknownst to them, five days had already passed since they last returned from the ruins.

As the sensational news about the third level of the ruins opening up continued to spread, even more Adventurers had poured in.

Naturally, intelligence reports came flooding in like snowflakes.

The pitfalls to avoid, the things to watch out for, and the general ecosystem and Demon distribution on the third level should all have been scouted out by now.

Now was the perfect time to make their move!

"By the way... have any of you seen Hill recently?" Zelir suddenly remembered something.

She had been gone for several days again.

It wasn’t that she was just cooped up in her room; Zelir had gone to knock on her door and gotten no response.

The other three looked at each other and all shook their heads.

None of them had seen her.

As the person with the least presence in the party, and an Assassin to boot, they usually didn’t pay much attention to Hill’s movements.

But Hill also hadn’t shown her face since they got back.

"Uh... She should have a sense of time, right...?"

Marcus said, a little uncertainly, "If she’s not back by tomorrow, we’ll go look for her."

Just as Marcus was speaking, someone pushed open the door and entered the inn.

It was Hill!

However, she looked travel-worn, as if she had been rushing about outside for a long time.