The Last Adventurer - Chapter 94

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Chapter 94 Cactus Desert (3)

6.

The Adventurers’ Association, the group that manages adventurers in Maple World.

A surprising number of adventurers were dissatisfied with the Adventurers’ Association.

The reason was simple.

“What does the Adventurers’ Association do?”

From the adventurers’ perspective, there was no real need to receive help from the Adventurers’ Association.

In reality, most adventurers formed their own parties and went on their own adventures.

The Adventurers’ Association also periodically provided information, guidelines, and rules for adventurers, but there was hardly any enforcement.

However, there were a few cases where the Adventurers’ Association took active measures.

One was to judge adventurers who engaged in trolling behavior.

The other was to hunt powerful boss-level monsters that appeared throughout Maple World.

Of the two, the Adventurers’ Association put a lot of effort into hunting boss-level monsters.

To be precise, that was the reason the Adventurers’ Association was created.

To create a group that could catch monsters that most adventurers couldn’t, boss monsters!

Among them, there were a few types of boss monsters that the Adventurers’ Association was most cautious of.

They were monsters like Mushmom, Giant Nepenthes, and Dew.

This was because these types of monsters were not only strong themselves but also had the power to change the food chain and environment of an area if left alone.

A representative example was the nightmare incident of the Mushroom Cloud, where millions of Mushmoms emerged from Sleepywood after a Mushmom that appeared there a long time ago was left alone.

The same was true for Giant Nepenthes. If left alone, they would eat adventurers and grow stronger, eventually becoming a disaster that adventurers couldn’t handle.

The giant cactus Dew was the worst of them all.

The Adventurers’ Association said:

“Anyone who finds Dew, report it to the association and you’ll receive 1 million mesos immediately.”

There was no need to catch it.

Just report its existence, and they would give 1 million mesos, a huge sum of money, on the spot.

It was an exceptional bounty.

In other words, the monster Dew could become a nightmare if left alone.

It wasn’t just a vague imagination.

In fact, a long time ago, there was a Dew that survived in the Nihal Desert for about three years.

Around that Dew, millions of Cactuses had grown.

The adventurer who first discovered the scene at that time said:

“It’s a green hell.”

That’s how terrifying the scene was.

First of all, the walking cactus monster Cactus itself was a very powerful monster.

Unlike mushroom monsters like Orange Mushroom or Green Mushroom, cactus monsters had a different level of strength.

Above all, the thorns on their bodies were very threatening. They were literally like needles made of steel.

If you got pricked, it wasn’t just a sting, but your skin would be pierced, and your flesh would be ripped off.

Crucially, the giant cactus monster Dew itself was very strong.

Its body was so hard that you could think of it as a golem-like boulder rather than a cactus, and the thorns coming out of its body were so strong that they should be called spears rather than thorns.

Therefore, over 10,000 adventurers gathered under the name of the Adventurers’ Association to deal with Dew and the millions of Cactuses.

It was an anecdote that all adventurers from the Nihal Desert knew, and so all adventurers from the Nihal Desert said:

“Many monsters are scary, but the scariest of all is a neglected Dew.”

The fear of Dew.

It wasn’t just the adventurers of the Nihal Desert who knew it.

Adventurers in Victoria Island, far away, were also well aware of the fear of Dew.

The monster Dew, located in the Signus Knights’ tomb where Oz’s disciple died, was that kind of monster.

“Boss.”

That’s why…

“What did you say just now?”

“Change of plans. Originally, we were going to spend the rest of our time here, but now we’re getting out of here in an hour.”

“Wait, an hour?”

El Pam’s words made his companions, including Divo, who usually didn’t get flustered by anything, look dumbfounded.

“Boss, it’s Dew! Dew! He’s the one who creates that green hell!”

In the end, Divo reacted strongly.

That’s how absurd El Pam’s words were.

“He’s not someone you can catch in just an hour!”

El Pam replied to those words.

“According to my calculations, it will take about 3 days and 13 hours.”

“Huh?”

El Pam explained to Divo and his companions, whose heads were tilted at the unexpected answer.

“It’s exactly as I said. To hunt Dew, we have to deal with the Cactuses around him first. That alone will take at least 45 hours. We have to clean them up without encountering Dew. After that, we need to allocate at least 30 hours to hunt Dew.”

Everyone’s heads tilted even more at the overly detailed explanation.

“But, Boss? How can we catch him in an hour?”

El Pam showed them the answer to that question.

“Because we have Oz’s Necklace.”

7.

“Oz’s Necklace?”

Cheryl’s expression was surprised at Sejan’s words.

“Is it the Oz’s Necklace that I know?”

It couldn’t be helped.

“Yes. The necklace is made from the Phoenix’s Eye.”

The Oz’s Necklace, the leader of the Blaze Mages, or more accurately, it should be called the Phoenix’s Eye.

Needless to say, the item’s ability was beyond words, as Oz herself wore it.

“It doubles the duration of fire attribute magic.”

“It’s an item that fire mages dream of.”

As the description said, the duration was doubled, meaning that the duration of fire attribute magic was doubled when used.

Those who didn’t know would ask what the point was, but those who knew would react differently.

This was because fire attribute magic had a duration.

Taking Fire Arrow as an example, even if Fire Arrow hit the target, it would naturally disappear after a certain amount of time. Unless there was something that could burn, it would be strange for it to continue to exist.

But if the duration was doubled? The damage that could be dealt would also be extraordinary.

That wasn’t all.

The extended duration also meant that the durability of the fire attribute magic would increase.

That’s why Cheryl was surprised.

“How could Oz’s Necklace be around her disciple’s neck?”

It was incomprehensible that such a great and precious item was around the neck of a disciple, who had been a disciple for just over a year.

Such an item should have been kept from leaving Oz’s possession.

Sejan answered the question.

“It was bait.”

“Bait?”

“While investigating Queen Areda, I often had doubts.”

“What kind of doubts?”

“Those who opposed Queen Areda were killed in the Mystic Gate. Without exception.”

Cheryl wasn’t surprised at that.

Instead, she gave him a look, and Sejan nodded at that look.

“The Cross Hunters knew it too.”

Cheryl didn’t answer.

She just gave him a look.

As if to say she was sorry she couldn’t tell him.

“There’s no need to be sorry. I know the world the Cross Hunters face is harsher than the one we, the Sand Painting Group, face.”

Sejan only gave a bitter smile instead of complaining.

“Anyway, I had to find out what it was, and around that time, I met someone who had similar thoughts to ours.”

“Was it Oz’s disciple?”

“If it were, Oz’s Necklace wouldn’t have been given.”

“It was Oz, the leader of the Blaze Mages.”

Only then could Cheryl understand the whole situation.

Why the Signus Knights moved.

Why did Oz gave her precious necklace to her disciple.

Why the Sand Painting Group had sacrificed so much to bring back the remains of the Signus Knights.

“We made thorough preparations.”

And why Sejan was so sure of the El Pam party’s failure.

Only then could Cheryl’s expression harden.

“I assure you, they were well-equipped enough to clear even a Green Rank Mystic Gate.”

It would be strange for the El Pam party to succeed where they had failed, despite their thorough preparations.

Seeing Cheryl’s expression, Sejan spoke.

“I acknowledge the El Pam party’s skills. They will probably reach the third floor soon.”

With those words, Sejan closed his eyes.

“Therefore, I will pray for their souls.”

8.

“He’s dead.”

Divo said again, looking at the sight beyond the endless horde of Cactuses.

“He’s dead!”

In Divo’s eyes, he saw it.

The 40-meter-long, gigantic cactus monster Dew was falling forward.

Boom!

As Dew’s body fell onto the sandy desert, a huge roar erupted, and sand soared into the air.

It was proof.

Proof that the boss monster Dew was incredibly hard and heavy, even compared to a golem.

Proof that he was an unbelievably terrifying monster.

In fact, Dew was a nightmare for monsters. For adventurers, one swing of Dew’s arm or leg was like facing a charging elephant at full speed.

The concept of blocking was virtually impossible.

But Dew was collapsing.

“The Boss did it!”

By none other than El Pam, with his attack.

“In just an hour!”

Even El Pam kept his promise to the exact time.

In fact, it was unbelievable.

The reason Dew was tricky was not only because of the destructive power from his incredibly hard body, but also because of the defensive power of that hard body.

That’s why he was often compared to a golem. It was no exaggeration to say he was practically a walking rock.

Naturally, most magic was virtually meaningless against Dew.

Lightning wouldn’t work on a rock, and neither would poison.

Fire was even more meaningless.

To be precise, for it to have any meaning, persistent attacks over a long period were necessary.

That’s why…

‘The Phoenix’s Eye, the effect is certain.’

El Pam saw Oz’s Necklace, which he had obtained this time, and boldly changed all his plans.

The fire attribute magic that El Pam used had extraordinary power.

However, the biggest peculiarity of El Pam’s fire attribute magic was that he used telekinesis.

Among them, the Revolver technique, which used telekinesis to rotate Fire Arrow!

‘The duration of Revolver has doubled.’

In other words, doubling the duration of fire attribute magic meant doubling the time Revolver was maintained upon contact with the enemy.

This was a huge deal.

You would know if you tried it even a little.

Making a hole for 10 seconds and making a hole for 20 seconds, the difference is twice, but the depth is not twice.

‘Even if it’s not Cold Beam, it’s possible to penetrate Dew’s body.’

Of course, El Pam also had ice attribute magic that lasted longer, but ice attribute magic was heavy, so the telekinesis, mental power, and mana required were incomparably greater than fire attribute magic.

In any case, the moment it became possible to penetrate Dew’s hard body with fire attribute magic, El Pam didn’t hesitate.

He started the operation.

Fire Arrow, Enhanced Fire Arrow, and even Apollo’s Fire Arrow.

He used magic whenever the cooldown ended, persistently digging into the place where Dew’s core, the mana stone, existed.

For an hour.

During that hour, while his companions distracted the Cactuses and Dew, he succeeded in the operation.

It was a great achievement that El Pam hadn’t even expected.

But El Pam wasn’t simply happy here.

He thought instead.

‘More than that, the fact that Oz’s Necklace is here means that none other than Oz, the leader of the Blaze Mages, was involved in this.’

Bayos’ death was a bigger deal than El Pam thought.

Naturally, the ripple effect after he cleared this place would also be bigger than he thought.

‘This isn’t a story that ends with one Legendary item.’

It meant that the calculations had to change.

It was then.

“Boss!”

His companions, who had been drawing aggro for El Pam for an hour, approached him.

“You’re amazing!”

Everyone had a look of wonder on their faces.

“Good work. Thanks to you, it was possible.”

El Pam readily expressed his gratitude to his companions.

“Thanks to us? What did we do? All we did was flutter around against the Cactuses.”

Divo and his companions smiled at El Pam’s praise.

They seemed to think that what El Pam said was just a passing remark.

“It’s not.”

But El Pam’s words were not empty words.

If El Pam were alone, it would have been impossible to focus on hunting Dew for an hour.

And it was no easy task to stall against tens of thousands of Cactuses, including Dew, for an hour.

Especially in the extreme environment of a desert!

Most adventurers wouldn’t have lasted even 10 minutes.

“Thanks to you, it was possible.”

At El Pam’s repeated words, his companions realized he wasn’t just saying it and nodded.

“Haha, isn’t it thanks to the hard training we’ve had under the Boss? Compared to that training, this is nothing, just a game.”

They smiled even brighter, a smile full of confidence.

“So, is there anything else to do? We have energy to spare.”

“That’s fortunate.”

“Huh?”

El Pam said to his companions.

“Let’s finish cleaning up the Cactuses.”

“C-cleaning up?”

Divo turned his head in surprise at those words and looked at the hundreds of thousands of Cactuses that remained.

“Those?”

El Pam nodded and said.

“We have time and energy left, so we have to use it up.”

At that moment, the smiles disappeared from everyone’s faces.

But soon, they smiled again.

Because they knew.

“Yes, there’s no reason to refuse such a good training opportunity.”

That El Pam wasn’t just saying this to torment them, but truly for their sake.

“I have no problem.”

“Yeah, let’s see it through to the end.”

“It’s good to earn money by catching them.”

Above all, El Pam’s companions were confident.

In fact, it was natural for them to be confident.

They had endured for an hour even with Dew present, so it wouldn’t be difficult to endure longer now that Dew was dead.

“The four of us should be able to handle it without any problems.”

El Pam knew that too.

So he said.

“So now, we hunt individually.”

“Huh? Individually?”

“Hunting together isn’t training. It has to be hard for it to be training.”

With those words, hell began.

That hell ended two days later.

The El Pam party, they went outside.

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