Volume 3 - CH 1.5

A few minutes later, they found two camouflaged Golems on the side of the road.

“The outer shell of the golem is even harder on its back. So, one blow won’t be enough to break it.”

“They are weak to water, right? Shouldn’t we just spray some water on them?”

“No, we shouldn’t use precious water so recklessly. We just gotta use our strength.”

“Just one minute.” 

Reito said and used his storage magic to pull out a giant jug of water. Usually, he would have used this water for cooking.

“Use this.”

“This? Are you sure?”

“I have two, so it’s not a problem.”

Reito stored water for both cooking and drinking with his Storage Magic. As far as the water went, he always kept an excess of it to cook with.

Reito handed the water bucket he had pulled out to Gonzo, the two of them holding on tight as they approached the golems.

They threw water on their heads.

The golems suddenly opened their eyes, but the part of their body where water had been thrown on it was starting to change color and came off like mud.

Without a moment’s delay, Gonzo and Reito prepared their weapons and attacked their backs.

“Nnng!!”

“Graaaahh….!?”

“Eat this!!”

“Graa…!?”

Gonzo beat the golems with his club while Reito pierced their core with his Extermination Blade. This time, he wasn’t concerned about extracting the heart, he just wanted to subjugate them.

“Phew, that should do it”

“You helped me back there, Reito. I couldn’t have done this job alone”

“Hehe… I feel like I’m fighting like a proper Support Magician for the first time”

『You’re just feeling that way now?』

Ignoring Airis’s joke, Reito observed his surroundings.

The sun had completely set and his surroundings were enveloped in darkness. When Reito tried using “Fireball” to light up their surroundings, Gonzo put out his hand to stop that.

“『Photosphere』”

“W, what is that?”

“It’s a 『Photosphere』. Even I can use this magic.”

A shining ball of light appeared from Gonzo’s hand, drifting around their surroundings. Reito was surprised as it was the first time he had seen this magic. He had never learned it. It appeared to be some sort of beginner level holy magic.

Gonzo further explained to Reito, “This skill comes from holy magic. It won’t hurt you if you touch it.

“Really? It looks like a 『Fireball』.”

“Yeah, but I can only use two or three kinds of magic. You don’t know this one, Reito?”

“I don’t know it but, I’ll learn it right away” Reito said and turned his sight toward Gonzo’s light and held out his palm, concentrating.

“『Photosphere』”

“Nngg!?”

A ball of light the size of a softball appeared in Reito’s hand, releasing strong beams of light. It was too strong so Reito put out the light in a hurry.

When Reito looked up, he saw a screen come into his field of vision:

.

<Beginner Magic Skill “Photosphere” acquired>

.

He learned a beginner magic skill without harm.

Reito tried conjuring his new “Photosphere.” A total of three “Photospheres” floated around their surroundings.

“All right, this should be good… Much brighter and more convenient than ‘Fireball’.”

“G-Good job Reito, nice!”

“All right, let’s get going!”

Gonzo had a cold sweat over Reito who was easily able to master the “Photosphere” magic skill.

If the light was too strong, there would be a chance it would provoke some monsters. But, since there were only Golems in this mine, it should be good to draw them in.

“Oh! Found one. But it’s already moving.”

“What? Where?”

“It’s over there but… Oh, that’s right, you don’t have the 『Night Vision』 skill. It’s like I’m an assassin.”

Thanks to Reito’s “Night Vision” and “Far Sight” skills, he was able to notice Golems who approached them.

There were three of them. They were probably drawn in by Reito’s “Photosphere.” They discreetly creeped over without making a noise.

“The ones over there think we haven’t noticed them. Well, I guess they are hidden in darkness so it’d be difficult for them to know otherwise.”

“I can’t really see, are we all right?”

“They are about 20 meters out. Hold on, let me entrap them.”

Reito measured his enemy’s distance and put his hands on the ground, activating his “Earth Block” skill.

The earth underneath the golems’ feet caved-in and they sank into the ground. They were heavy but the “Earth Block” was too powerful. Checking that his skill worked well, Reito took his hands off the ground and drew his Extermination Blade.

“Graaah!?”

“Ah!! What happened?”

“My 『Earth Block』 skill destabilized the earth under their feet. We gotta go fast!!”

Reito moved his “Photosphere” to shine a light on the Golem. He figured he would go about defeating them through sheer force this time.

“『Helmet Smasher』!!”

“Graaaah!?”

Reito raised his saber overhead, striking them down on their head, cutting through to the chest. The saber made it to the core, collapsing the golem.

The battle skill that Reito used, “Helmet Smasher,” was one he had learned from the master of the Black Tiger Adventurer Guild, Bal. It was a “Stark Blade” combo attack merging “Strike Blade” with other sword skills.

“Ho ho!!” 

Gonzo raised his voice in excitement.

Reito tested another “Stark Blade” combo against the other golem.

“『Golden Stark Blade』!!”

“Graaaah!?”

While Reito was pulling his saber out of the Golem he had pierced, Gonzo engrossed the muscle of his arms, sweeping his club sideways.

He smashed two golems to pieces.

Reito was surprised and impressed with Gonzo.

This was the first time Reito had watched another adventurer fight. Gonzo was a C Rank fighter, but appeared to be far and away the best in that rank.

“Phew. Only four more until it’s ‘mission accomplished.’”

“So far, it’s gone swimmingly but, where are the others.”

“There is an excavation site up ahead. If we go there, there ought to be other Golems. They love minerals, after all.”

“Excavation site…”

Just like when he had fought with Gain at Ymir Coal Mine, Rock Mine also has excavation sites.

But, this mine is smaller and sealed off. There were too many golems.

“Taking back the excavation site of this mine is another condition of our quest. There should be only five or six golems there at most.”

*In that case, we should be fine… Oh, is it that place over there?”

While they were travelling along the mountain road, Reito discovered a cave.

There could be no doubt that it had been created by a human and there was a sign in front of the cave. “Entry Prohibited.” It appeared that if you passed through the cave, it connected to the excavation site.

Gonzo went out ahead and the two followed him.

~ 

“All right, we’re here, this is the excavation site”

“Huh… It looks a little like Ymir Coal Mine”

After they had passed through the cafe, scenery similar to the Ymir Coal Mine unfolded before them.

In Reito’s field of vision, a few golems were moving around. Just as Gonzo had imagined, there were about five or six of them.

Reito proposed to him, “This looks like it’ll be a pain… Should I lure them in one at a time?”

“Lure them in? How?”

“We can use Ullr as a decoy and then… Huh? Where is that boy?”

“Woof!”

“Oh, you were behind me the whole time. What’s in your mouth?”

Reito looked behind to see a glowing mineral rock in Ullr’s mouth. That was mysterious but he took the mineral rock from Ullr.

Gonzo saw that and yelled in surprise, “Where did you get that Light Stone? That’s a really rare mineral that always glows. It’s a precious mineral that you can use instead of lighting at night or in places like caves.”

“Wow, you sure found something special, huh boy?”

“Woof!”

Ullr poked Reito with his nose as if to say “praise me more!”

Reito patted his head and gazed at the Light Stone. Having already learned the “Phosophere” skill he couldn’t see any value in it so he offered it to Gonzo.

“Gon-chan, here you go. Ullr found it for me but I don’t think I’m going to use it…”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah, don’t mention it.”

“Uh, uh… Thank you.”

Gonzo accepted the Light Stone and put it in his Storage Stone. In the meanwhile, Reito scoped out the Golems at the excavation site and called out to Ullr.

“Ullr, draw them in. We’re gonna wait right here in the cave, waiting.”

“Will Ullr be okay?”

“Woof!!”

Ignoring Gonzo’s concern, Ullr followed Reito’s orders and moved out into the excavation site. He drew the attention of the scattered golems.

Reito and Gonzo moved outside of the cave and got ready for the interception attack. Reito was preparing to use his “Earth Block” while Gonzo grasped his club.

Ullr’s bark along with the footsteps of countless Golems echoed inside the cave.

“Woof!!”

“Graah!!”

“They’re here!!”

“Got it!!”

Reito used his “Earth Block” skill and made a giant sink-pit. The golems emerging from the cave fell into the trap and let out a shriek.

~

“Graah?!” “Grooh!?” “Gwaah!?”

“Let’s go!!”

Making sure all the golems had fallen into his pit, Reito used his “Photosphere” to light it up.

The golems were piled up on top of each other, wriggling desperately, but it appeared that they couldn’t get up on their own power.

“As things are, if we drop a bomb in, it oughta take care of everything.” 

Reito said before Gonzo cut in to stop him.

“Hold up, we need to take a part of the Golem’s body back. Or else there will be no proof that we completed the quest.”

“Ah, that’s a good point.”

Adventurers were obligated to bring a memento from the monster back to the guild when they got a quest. Up to that point, Gonzo had carefully retrieved the cores of the Golems he took down.

Reito was trying to think about how to manifest a large quantity of water.

『Mr. Reito, the time has come to use the Crystal Stone』

『A, I totally forgot about it… But, it only strengthens aquatic magic skills and I only know “Water Block”』

『In that case, why don’t you combine “Ice Block” with “Fireball?” They have poor compatibility so a composite magic attack will be difficult, but…』

Reito listened to Airis’s advice and tried out that method.

He called out to Gonzo, “Gonzo-chan, keep an eye on them.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to try a new magic skill…”

Reito gazed at the Crystal Stone in his ring and put “Ice Block” into action.

Under the effects of the Crystal Stone, he produced a larger “Ice Block” than usual.

Reito was surprised and then released a “Fireball.” He aimed to melt the “Ice Block” floating in the sky and combined the “Fireball” with it.

“Hey… Are you alright? What are you doing?”

Distracted by Gonzo’s voice, the magic was disrupted.

“Hold on, don’t talk to me, I’m trying to concentrate.”

“Uh, sorry.”

“Whiinne~”

Ullr whimpered.

He launched a countless number of “Fireballs” to float around the “Ice Block.” The heat from the “Fireballs” began melting the ice.

Launching more “Fireballs” at a higher speed, he let the water wash down into the pit.

“Grr….!! This is really tricky.”

“But, you’re creating so much water.”

“Grrraaahhhhh….!!”

The water dripping down from the “Ice Block” rained on the golems’ flesh. Their stone exterior changed color and washed away like mud, turning the pit into a swamp.

After a few minutes, the “Ice Block” had completely melted and the only thing left in the sink-pit was a lot of mud and the cores of the golems.

“Haa, haa… Phew, maybe I should have just fought them the old-fashioned way.”

“Yeah but now we just gotta collect the cores and the quest is finished… Thank you.”

“Woof!!”

They set out respectively collecting the cores and with that Gonzo’s quest was complete.

There were only six golems in the excavation pit but working at night was dangerous so the two of them retreated to Gollum Town.

Reito told Gonzo, “Phew… This is the first time I’ve done anything adventure-like in a while.”

“Yeah, you had a lot going on. Ullr, get on my back.”

“Woof!!”

They were getting to go back when Gonzo said, “When we get back, I’ll share the compensation for the quest with you.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it.”

“After you’ve helped me so much, there’s no way I can let you off with nothing.”

“Hmm… If you say so.”

Reito wasn’t stretched for money or anything. It was true that he was the one who had defeated over half of the Golems.

After hearing what Gonzo had to say, he decided to gratefully accept the compensation.