By adding a reasonable handicap, I was able to adjust to a level similar to Helena’s. We were enjoying a tense, close match when suddenly, the slis, which had been blindly charging at us, all hesitated at once.
Good tis always co to an end. Was this the beginning of that end?
As their numbers dwindled past a certain point, the slis felt a sense of crisis and began to rge into one.
Squirm.
Instead of rushing at or Helena, they started rging with each other, swelling up.
“Brother? Are you just going to watch? It might be better to attack while they’re rging.”
“That’s such a lackluster… No, attacking now would be more botherso. Look closely inside.”
Not just their body fluids, but also their dark red cores were rging into one.
“Since the rging isn’t complete yet, it’s like separate slis sticking together. If we attack now, we might just make them slightly smaller, but we won’t be able to kill them.”
“To think we have to just watch these things, which look like phlegm spat out by an Evil God, right in front of us…”
Helena seed genuinely disappointed. Even if they rged, they would only beco a giant sli, making it not that hard to defeat.
Despite this, she was so regretful because, as she said, she hated having to stand idle with monsters right before her eyes.
Helena sighed deeply, and I continued, scratching my cheek.
“Well…no matter what we do, they have to watch us just the sa. So we can just wipe them out with a wide-area spell.”
“Whoa! Brother! Hurry up and…! Please blast those piles of debris with a big and beautiful spell!”
“Then my victory in the bet will be confird, are you okay with that?”
“Killing the monster is more important than the bet!”
Helena, sticky with sli fluids, looked at with desperate eyes.
Hmm… If it were the beginning of the sester, she would have rushed in to reduce their size, even slightly.
Her skills and self-control have grown a lot compared to the Helena I knew from around this ti.
Probably because she experienced an attack in the practice dungeon, unlike in H&A.
She was definitely the type to put in more effort when stimulated.
With Helena twitching as if she wanted to charge right in, I smiled and nodded.
“Alright. Ah, I know I just said this, but… let’s not count this one in the bet tally. It seems more fun that way.”
Since only I could take it down, it was impossible to have a fair competition. This had to be done right.
I adjusted my grip on the staff, holding it long again, and raised it.
I glanced at Carla, who had already finished her part and was idly chatting. In other words, defeating this sli would be the end of it.
Since it was the last battle, it wouldn’t hurt to end it with a bang.
Thump.
As I drew out all the mana I had been holding back, my heart started racing wildly.
Listening to the noisy hum of the surrounding mana resonating, I slowly opened my mouth.
“『Righteous anger. Noble goodwill. You are like the sun in the sky.』”
A light-attribute spell that Helena would like. I even added a slightly religious tone to the chant on purpose.
This should definitely please Helena.
As the vast mana moved, the wind swirled around naturally. Ignoring the flapping of my robes, I spread my arms wide.
Then, in the coolest voice I could muster, I recited the best catchphrase I knew.
“『Let there be light. Shining Judgnt.』”
As soon as the incantation echoed, a line of light shimred and flickered above the slis. Then…
Whooooosh!!
A giant pillar of light rose along that line.
With an overwhelming brightness that seed to illuminate the entire dungeon, Helena’s mouth gaped open.
Hmm. I knew she’d like it.
In fact… Shining Judgnt wasn’t a spell I used very often.
It was powerful, and its light attribute gave it an advantage in many battlefields, but…
The mana consumption was too high.
How high? It consud about 2.5 tis the mana of Star Light Rain, which was also a mid-level light spell.
Star Light Rain was specialized for dealing with minor mobs, so it consud relatively less mana, but even so, 2.5 tis was too much.
But this spell had its advantages. In large-scale battles, launching Shining Judgnt as a first strike significantly boosted our morale.
It was sothing like feeling the presence of light together… I finally understood what that ant.
It simply ant it was incredibly cool.
Standing next to Helena, who was also staring up at the pillar of light with her mouth wide open, I admired the scene.
Even knowing that I created the spell and received a 25% bonus from the blessing of the Sun God… it still filled with awe.
I had truly grown stronger.
To be able to cast such powerful mid-level spells just after reaching the rank of Junior Magician.
I wondered how great my spells would beco when I started combining elents.
This pleasant daydream continued until a gate appeared in front of us, signaling the dungeon’s clearance.
Ding!
“Huh?”
After we cleared the dungeon and stepped outside, an alert appeared even though we hadn’t touched the floating reward that was still in the form of a light cluster.
What was this?
【Dungeon Cleared!】
You have cleared a hidden dungeon!
Such comndable progress!
The Righteous Radiance is overjoyed by your spell, rolling on the ground in delight.
Other gods, taken aback by this sight, bless you.
Trait: The Blessing of All Gods (B) grows slightly.
Ah. So it was this.
A growth-type blessing that could be gradually enhanced by clearing dungeons or hunting cultists.
This insignificant dungeon wouldn’t contribute much to its growth.
However, isn’t it said that even dust can pile up into a mountain? Clearing them bit by bit would eventually lead to growth.
Though it seed like the Righteous Radiance was up to sothing strange again….
But right now, it was ti for the dungeon’s reward. The rewards here were quite good for the dungeon’s difficulty.
Perhaps it was because the preliminary quest was annoying?
“Alright.”
I reached out to the floating cluster of light before . There was a solid sensation in the empty air.
As the slowly dimming light completely faded, I found a large dallion in my hand.
【Roaring Lion dallion】
A large dallion carved in the shape of a roaring lion.
It has lost its original brilliance from long neglect, but sothing still remains.
A warm sensation that reassures the holder. And whose traces are the faint bloodstains?
Rember this.
In the most desperate monts, people tend to cling to sothing.
…Even if it's a prayer that goes unanswered.
-Can recharge divine power (Current charge 1%).
-When health drops below 5%, automatically uses the charged divine power to heal the wearer.
-Increases divine power efficiency by 10%.
-Once a week, can release all stored divine power at once to cause a divine explosion.
“Oh.”
If I were a paladin or a combat priest, I would have used this as much as the Shining Lion Dagger in the early stages.
It’s well-made equipnt that not only aids survivability but also compensates for the offensive power that priests lack with the divine explosion.
Unfortunately, later on, when you have enough money to buy potions, and you beco adept at healing with divine magic as a priest, its usefulness diminishes.
The divine explosion remained useful, but… the divine power charge limit was awkward, making it less practical over ti.
Well, it was a piece of jewelry, not a weapon, so it could be quite useful until the mid-ga.
Equipnt that increased divine power efficiency was rare.
I only smiled satisfactorily at the dallion that looked and perford just like I rembered.
“Ah? Ah…?”
Helena trembled, unable to take her eyes off the dallion in my hand.
It made sense. As the na suggested, it was one of the holy relics of the Righteous Radiance.
“Brother? This is….”
“I’m giving it to you.”
“…What?”
Helena froze, unable to believe that I would give it to her.
While the dallion was good equipnt, it was useless for us.
Healing? We had plenty of potions. Divine explosion? Magic was our best offense.
We were already in the inefficient phase, so there was no need to covet this item.
Moreover, it required divine power to be recharged, and having to ask soone to do it every ti was a hassle. The divine power efficiency option was aningless to us as magicians.
Although it was a holy relic, we could use it as a bargaining chip with the Church of Righteous Radiance to get sothing, but…
Who am I?
An unofficial apostle of the Righteous Radiance.
I already had maximum favor with the church. They would grant most of my requests without needing to trade a holy relic.
So, giving it to Helena, who could use it well and whom I intended to recruit as a party mber, was the best option.
It would also help to soften the negative image she had of .
“Ah, uh, um… I didn’t an to ask for it… but a holy relic… ugh….”
“Why are you feeling so burdened? I’m not just giving it to you for free.”
“Eh?”
“Just promise to help with a few requests later. I’m giving it to you on that condition.”
“C-could you please wait a mont, Brother? What kind of requests are you talking about….?”
“Eh.”
I placed the dallion around Helena’s neck, who was creaking like she was broken.
“There! Now that I’ve given it to you, it’s a promise, right?”
“…!!”
Hah! Didn’t I look pretty cool just now?
Feeling proud, I looked at Helena with satisfaction.
For so reason, Helena had a look on her face like soone who had been forced to buy dozens of jade mattresses from an acquaintance.
What? Why is she looking at like that?
I couldn’t understand at all.
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