NOVEL NEXT Chapter 11 - Chapter 11: Escort Quest (2)
Chapter 11: Escort Quest (2)
What made Dion and his group outstanding wasn’t just their visuals. Taking breaks intermittently, they walked continuously from morning without breaking a sweat. This was the same for the mage, Gabriel. Especially the swordsman, Dion, and the other frontline members effortlessly marched wearing heavy full plates. Being an adventurer is a test of endurance.
However, there was no time to rest for tired bodies. We had to quickly finish our meal and take turns standing guard. Particularly, I was the lowest-ranking member, so I took the initiative to help with cooking. Well, calling it cooking is a stretch; it was more like boiling water and making soup with vegetable scraps and dried meat. Fortunately, being of the Earth attribute, I had the Rock Wall skill. While it wasn’t useful in combat yet, for making a makeshift stove, the level 1 Earth Wall was more than enough.
“Feeling tired, Alexi? You did well,” Hyamo, the leader of the caravan, praised me. I had a meal with the caravan members. Normally, at times like this, the client and the adventurers would eat separately. However, he specifically spoke to me to ensure that I, as an adventurer, wouldn’t be underestimated by peers. Moreover, he patched things up with other merchants to make future escort requests smoother. Then he added, “If we improve our relationship, your dealings with your family should go more smoothly, don’t you think?” That’s what he said. I was fortunate that my first escort quest was with Hyamo’s caravan.
From the caravan members, I learned valuable information. This year, the granary in the southern region had a poor harvest, causing the price of grains to rise, and there was an increasing demand for alternative crops. However, if the next year returns to the usual abundant harvest, both grains and alternative crops will suddenly drop in value. Every time there’s a poor harvest, such things happen. So, when prices fall, buying and storing or processing at that time is essential. Buying at a low price and selling at a high price—the actions of merchants are the same in any world.
Although I thought I was aware of such trends from newspapers, it was fortunate to hear such stories from a merchant’s perspective. In this loop, I don’t intend to earn money through business or speculation, but this information will likely turn into money in the future. I earnestly listened, and they patted my shoulder, saying, “As expected of the little brother of the grand Appeal.” Unfortunately, it seems my brother’s misconduct is well known.
Later came the night watch. Since we would have three camping nights this time, we were scheduled to take turns standing guard in three parties. On the first night, I shared the watch with Falcon Blue, and we were on duty until midnight.
“Being surrounded by earth walls like this not only acts as a windbreak but also makes it easy to defend,” Dion, the caring handsome guy, praised. It made me happy.
“By the way, Pillbug… Oops, Alexi, I didn’t think you could fight reasonably well.”
“Now it’s trendy to skip incantations. You’re quite skilled,” Edome and Gabriel mentioned about the daytime combat. Fortunately, we didn’t encounter a thief attack, but there was a skirmish with a stray goblin and a Forest Wolf along the way. Edome spotted them early, and I happened to be nearby, driving them away with Stone Bullet.
“I’m just… like that.”
“I didn’t expect the Earth attribute skill to be so useful. Thanks to that, there was no need for me, the healer, to do anything.”
Being praised like this felt good. It was good that I raised Stone Bullet to level 4, allowing me to use Stone Blast. I wanted a wide-area attack skill. Currently, my stats looked like this:
Name: Alexi Appel
Race: Human
Title: D-rank Adventurer
Level: 27
HP: 700
MP: 700
POW: 70
INT: 70
AGI: 60
DEX: 70
Attribute: Earth
Skills:
+ Stone Bullet Lv4
+ Landscape Lv1
+ Rock Wall Lv3
+ Spear Technique Lv3
+ Body Enhancement Lv2
Equipment:
E Halberd
E Leather Armor
E Plate Bandana
E Leather Boots
E Cape
Status Points: Remaining 0
Skill Points: Remaining 10
The prey changed from a short spear to a halberd. Its reach was long, suitable for thrusting, cutting, and hooking. However, there was a sense of inadequacy. After all, it’s a weapon that shines on horseback. It would be good if I could get a horse someday.
The inadequacy wasn’t just with the weapon. My current job, a spear-wielding Lancer or an Earth Mage, was quite ambiguous. Even with stats, I couldn’t decide which ones to focus on, so I ended up raising them all on average. Characters like these ultimately don’t become useful towards the end. I am aware that I have failed in character development.
Guard duty without sleep is boring. To prevent myself from falling asleep, I make an effort to engage in conversation. This time, especially since I’m with them, Falcon Blue’s group bombarded me with many questions. In return, I received advice about my future path.
“Earth attribute adventurers are rare. I’ve never seen Stone Blast before.”
“Is that so?”
“This wall feels nice. If it were even sturdier, we wouldn’t need guards.”
“But you won’t be able to handle enemies from above.”
“If there’s a ceiling, you could withstand rain and wind.”
“Come to think of it, I read in a fairy tale that there’s a skill in earth magic that can build a house in an instant.”
“There is such a skill.”
“Eh?”
Everyone here was glued to me. Saying that, I also had a realization. As the Rock Wall skill level increases, earth walls turn into rocks, and eventually, forts and strongholds can be built.
That’s right. Speaking of earth magic, the ability to build houses anywhere is a staple in isekai stories. Why hadn’t I tried to improve this until now? Well, to raise the level, you need the power to defeat monsters. Raising skills like Spear Technique and Stone Bullet wasn’t in vain, but it made me wonder why I hadn’t focused on this aspect before. When they exclaimed that houses could be built, I hastily added, “Oh, well, I haven’t reached the level… trained enough.”
Even if I said level, they wouldn’t understand.
“If that’s true, it’s not in the realm of making the journey more comfortable.”
“You might even be able to sign exclusive contracts with kings and nobles of various countries.”
“Hey, if you can build houses, why not join our party?!”
Their gazes became noticeably passionate. I was excited too. However, to build a level 5 stronghold like a house, I needed to spend 90 skill points: 10 to acquire the skill initially, 20 to raise it from level 1 to 2, and 60 to reach level 5 from my current level 3. Of course, as the level goes up, it becomes increasingly difficult to raise, so predicting when I can build it is unpredictable. When I mentioned that it would take time for training, the atmosphere calmed down a bit. However, my immediate goal was set. I would become the man who can build houses with Earth attribute skills!
After that, the escort quest concluded smoothly, and we safely disbanded in the core city of the neighboring territory. After exchanging greetings with Hyamo and the caravan members, as well as Falcon Blue and other adventurers, I headed straight to a nearby intermediate dungeon. It was a location Dion had taught me, ideal for solo training.
Without returning to the capital, without taking the C-rank test, I relentlessly battled monsters here. The whole area was shallow, and unpopular because of the abundance of aquatic monsters, but for me, who could create footholds with Rock Wall and attack enemies from a distance with a halberd and Stone Bullet, it was an excellent hunting ground. After a while, when I heard rumors about another unpopular dungeon with mostly flying monsters, I moved my hunting ground there. Most flying monsters were of the Wind attribute, and Rock Blast could instantly kill them.
Raising my level continuously, my enthusiasm for gaining experience reached its peak. As the level of skills like Rock Wall increased, the grade of the buildings that could be constructed, such as forts and towers, also increased, and their livability improved significantly. For me, there was no choice but to raise them.
I spent my time in the dungeon, occasionally showing up at the adventurer guild to sell a large amount of materials from difficult-to-defeat flying monsters. Before I knew it, I had earned the nickname “Wing Killer.” Although I exchanged letters with my family, at first, there were arrows of urging for me to come back. After half a year, it seemed like they had given up. My brother would probably be smiling to himself, thinking that I, who had thrown myself into the adventurer business in a distant town, got what I deserved. However, such things didn’t matter anymore. I would build, build a sturdier fortress!
After a long time, I stayed at an inn in the city and had a pleasant dream. However, I had forgotten that the next day was October 1st.