Chapter 66

Translator: Kell | Editor: Weasalopes

Leaves of the Drakon Kidney Flower

They left town early the next morning and set off on a mountain trail . The plan was to go up and be back down by sundown, then head back to Scholarzard the next day . The first day of school might start two to three days from now .

The mountain they climbed was barren, with only a few half-withered shrubs growing here and there . At times they’d spot greenery – most likely alpine plants . Hikaru checked if they were rare medicinal herbs .

He had his Mana Detection on at all times . Once he detected mana, he would turn his ability off and confirm with his naked eye just in case . It was a kind of training for him .

There were rarely any monsters – or rather animals; only deer and mice .

「Phew . I’m exhausted . 」Hikaru said .

「Me too . But I feel like I have more stamina now . 」

They sat down on tree stumps in an open space to take a break . Lavia’s enhanced stamina most likely came from the one point Hikaru put on her “Stamina” back in the dungeon .

「Maybe the dungeon helped . 」

「I actually enhanced your Stamina using the Soul Board . 」

Lavia stared at him blankly .

「That’s incredible . You can do that too, huh?」she said ecstatically .

For Hikaru, it was not him who should receive the credit . It was all the power of the Soul Board . But Lavia saw things differently . In this world where “job classes” were thought of as an integral part of one’s abilities, she believed Hikaru’s power to configure Soul Boards to be extraordinary .

「Look, Hikaru . We can see the town from here . 」

He turned around to see a small town sprawled below . Situated by the main road, it was pretty much a desolate town with only a mountain trail . There was no such hobby as mountain climbing in this world . People only traversed the heights when necessary – gathering plants, hunting animals, or going to the other side of the mountain for some important business .

「Lavia! Get down!」

Hikaru’s Instinct picked up something . He grabbed Lavia’s hand and got down, activating his Group Obfuscation . In the blue skies above was a small, black dot . For a while it stayed like that, but soon enough…

「That’s not a bird, is it?」Lavia asked .

「It’s a Lesser Wyvern . 」

A full-fledged monster . Those belonging to the dragon family specifically preyed on humans and were encouraged to be killed when sighted .

Looks like we’re in luck .

Once a Lesser Wyvern was spotted, a kill quest would be sent to the Adventurers Guild immediately . As such, Hikaru didn’t expect to find one in these mountains .

The creature was flying towards their direction . It didn’t notice them lying face down on the ground with their cloaks completely covering them . It still might not see them if they stood with Group Obfuscation on, but it was better to be safe than sorry . Monsters might have something that surpassed humans’ “Instincts” .

The wyvern descended down a ridge nearby .

「…Hikaru? Your face says you want to go down there . 」

「Really?」

「Yeah . I know it’s strange . We’re supposed to be here gathering magical ores and fossils since you have the ability mana flowing in them . 」

「Well, yeah . 」

Lavia stood up with her hands on her hips and smiled broadly .

「We’re going to collect leaves of the Drakon Kidney Flower, aren’t we?」

「…That’s right . 」

Dragons, Lesser Wyverns included, loved the fragrance of the Drakon Kidney Flowers . In fact the more powerful ones plant its seeds near their nests to grow them . You only needed to follow a dragon to find the flowers . Of course, there was the danger of being spotted by the monster .

「I’m surprised you knew . 」Hikaru said .

「There were plenty of places nearby where we could complete requests, but we came all the way here where Dragon Kidney Flowers grow . I thought that was your plan all along . 」

「Smart . I’m very impressed . 」

「But why do you want to help the principal all of a sudden? I don’t think you need to help someone as rude as her . 」

「That’s a good point . 」

He had a reason for doing this . Talking with League made him realize that Forestia’s existence relied heavily on the balance between the seven nations . The principal’s home, Zubura, was especially small . It would be terrible if she lost her position .

Just giving her what she was looking for wouldn’t change things; not greatly, at least . But it was a big deal for League, and if the guy had the guts, Hikaru wouldn’t mind betting on him to make a change, to maintain the balance of this country . He explained that to Lavia as well .

「Why are you doing this when you have nothing to gain from it?」

「I’ll be staying in this world for the rest of my life . I just want to make this world with you a better place . So I have my own selfish reasons for helping out . 」

「Hikaru . 」She grasped his hand tight . 「I’ll help as well . 」

「Thanks . We’ll have to see if that guy’s actually studying under the professor from Kotobi . 」

「You want to see if he’s really serious about changing this country, huh?」

「Exactly . 」

Oddly enough, Hikaru wanted to face this world with positivity . All because he told Lavia everything, and she accepted him for who he was . He would do anything for her, even eliminating threats to the peace of this world .

「All right . Let’s go after the Lesser Wyvern . 」

They crested the hill . Down below was a dense greenery where the wyvern was lying down .

「Is it asleep?」Hikaru said .

「Looks like it . 」

「Can you wait behind that boulder?」

「Are you going alone?」

「It’ll be much easier for me to go alone . Just keep your Stealth on while hiding . Though if I give the signal, I want you to blast it with all you’ve got . 」

「…Okay . 」

After taking Lavia to hide behind a rock, Hikaru started downhill . He could barely keep his balance with all the pebbles . Stones rolled down the slope . He went down carefully, adjusting his angle of approach so the stones wouldn’t hit the sleeping wyvern .

He turned around . Lavia should be watching him from behind the boulder, but he couldn’t see her with her Stealth on . If he strained his eyes, though, he could tell she was there . It was as if she blended in with her surroundings .

「So this is what Stealth looks like . Amazing . 」

The reason why he could see her if he stared long enough was probably because it was only a level one Stealth .

Hikaru moved forward . With every step, he realized just how big the wyvern was . Its body was the size of a school bus, with gigantic wings .

They call this a “lesser” wyvern, huh…

The normal wyverns or actual dragons could be much bigger than this . In this world, a clear distinction was drawn between drakons and dragons . The ones that looked like winged lizards were called dragons, while the one Hikaru saw in the dungeon that looked like an enormous snake winding and coiling around was called a drakon .

「Zzzzzz… . 」

It would appear that the wyvern was really asleep . The smell of blood drifted in the air . Red smudge around the creature’s mouth indicated it just had dinner . Underneath its body were Drakon Kidney Flowers, leaves crawling on the ground . Red as blood, it was a strange flower, its petals warping and springing about .

Looks easy enough, Hikaru thought as he inched closer to the wyvern .