Chapter 16: The Elven Maiden

Speaking of which, that scroll for the gloves was outrageously expensive. The gold coins and gems Loyong managed to pry from the miser were nowhere near enough. In the end, it was only thanks to that rusty piece of iron that he succeeded in acquiring the scroll. Moreover, the shop clerk even handed Loyong a small badge, probably something akin to a VIP card. He couldn’t tell what it was made of; a thin cord was attached to it, making it easy to tie to oneself. As for the iron piece, the clerk kept it, claiming he’d help Loyong put it up for sale on the black market—spinning such a cloud of mysterious words that the novice Loyong, freshly arrived in this world, was utterly bamboozled.

In the end, Loyong said not a word, simply took his new “membership card” and left. Even after sitting in his room, he still felt dazed.

“Wait a minute?” After pondering for a long while, it suddenly dawned on him that he’d probably just been fleeced by a middleman! So that’s how they make their fortunes—always a step ahead. So hard to guard against! It seemed that, after becoming a mage, he was drifting ever further from the word ‘lawyer.’

He cleared his throat, brandished his sword, and pointed the tip forward—“You have the right to remain silent, but every word you say will be your last!”

Ruthless.

After resting for a bit, Loyong left the inn and went out to ask around, but there was no news of those level 8 powerhouses. He wandered all through the camp, checking every place where business was done—

Well, truth be told, he was looking for any place that might sell those rune gems that could raise a person’s level.

Unfortunately, not a single shop had them. When he asked at that wretched magic shop, the staff said that if he was truly desperate, they could try to ask around the black market for him.

Loyong refused flatly. Even if he was on the pay-to-win path, he wasn’t about to leap blindly into a pit someone had dug right in front of him!

Still, thinking of all this brought the wish-granting spirit back to his mind.

“Ah! I was too hasty!” If only… although life offers no ‘if onlys’, there’s no harm in imagining, is there? If, at that time, he had wished for a rune gem that could boost his level—say, by ten or eight levels—wouldn’t he have swept through the dungeon like a storm? Even if the big boss was level 15, he’d still have a fighting chance!

“Ah!” At this thought, Wang Ku let out a long, mournful sigh at the ceiling.

A loss. This time, he’d really drawn the short straw.

Granted, he’d gotten a Holy Light Angel, and even a Tsunade version at that. But still, it wasn’t the real thing.

And not even life-sized.

And then, the Empress. He probably wouldn’t be able to summon her now.

If he could get two at once, Loyong would accept it, but being forced to choose one out of two left him with a sense of regret.

He stood there hesitating for quite a while, cursing that blasted magic shop.

He prepared some food for supplies, storing it all in his storage ring, then strode toward the dungeon.

Before long, he arrived at the entrance. Peering inside, he saw a swarm of monsters blocking the way—it looked just like choosing endless mode in a game.

“The big shots must all be gone by now, right?” Loyong entered the dungeon, summoned his skeleton warriors, and followed slowly behind. He’d brought along two return-to-camp teleportation scrolls, so he could head straight for the boss, grab the loot, and leave. But leveling up by fighting monsters isn’t something you can rush—it’s an experience that must be earned bit by bit.

Thankfully, as a Disguiser, even if he used his staff as a longsword, it didn’t affect his previous spellcasting abilities. Still, the number of monsters here was overwhelming.

Even with Loyong and the skeleton warriors fighting side by side—his own monster-killing speed nearly matching that of three skeletons combined—meaning he was essentially equivalent to four level 8 skeleton warriors in combat, clearing just the entrance area still took him half a day.

On the bright side, the monsters dropped plenty of gems.

“Alright, I’m still doing way better than everyone else!” Loyong muttered to himself, listening to the Miser Spider scurrying around, mentally calculating what gear he could splurge on when he returned.

Pushing steadily forward, he didn’t know how much time had passed before he finally reached a spacious, well-lit chamber. Two level 12 spider monsters lay there quietly.

Along the way, he’d found the weak points of all the level 9 monsters and dispatched them one by one, reaping some decent loot.

“A pair of golden-quality mage’s leather armor, a blue-quality knight’s longsword…” Not particularly useful to him, but they’d fetch some gold at least.

Behind the two big monsters stood several treasure chests, looking far superior to the battered ones he’d seen before. Who knew what treasures lay within?

“Wow!” Opening a chest, Loyong gasped in surprise. Besides gold and gems, there was a scroll—one he’d never seen before.

“A Wish Scroll!”

From the chamber’s entrance came a startled cry, and a figure ducked in with several quick steps.

“Huh?” Loyong looked over in surprise at the two spider monsters, still slumbering, undisturbed by the commotion. He hadn’t expected to find someone else in this world who, like him, could evade the monsters’ perception.

Surprised, but alert, he quickly stowed the scroll away.

“Wait!” The figure lunged forward, reaching to snatch the scroll.

With a sweep of his staff, Loyong summoned a skeleton warrior to block the way.

Crack!

He didn’t know what trick the intruder used, but the newly-summoned skeleton was smashed to pieces in an instant.

At that moment, Loyong rolled to the chamber door. Seeing his skeleton destroyed, he stayed calm, driving his sword straight into the belly of one of the level 12 monsters.

With a swish, the monster jerked awake, circled the chamber a few times, but found nothing, then lay back down.

“Give me the Wish Scroll!”

A cool, clear voice echoed from within the chamber.

“A Wish Scroll? You mean one that grants wishes?” Loyong asked.

“That’s right.”

The figure reappeared, seemingly from nowhere—as if he’d been invisible. Loyong noticed, though, that the stranger was standing in exactly the same spot where the skeleton had shattered, not having moved. Perhaps… his skill had a flaw—unlike Loyong’s ghillie suit, it only allowed him to turn invisible without moving?

Still powerful, to be sure, but not quite as incredible.

As the other advanced, Loyong summoned another skeleton warrior. Thanks to his own attributes, this one also had camouflage properties, but it was set to attack monsters automatically, regardless of their level.

No sooner did it appear than it charged straight at the spider monsters.

“Hey!” The intruder exclaimed, then vanished again.

The startled spider monster spun around the chamber, crushed the skeleton, and settled down once more.

“Damn necromancer!” came a woman’s voice, cursing from within the chamber.

Loyong was speechless. He’d just fought monsters, opened a chest, and done nothing wrong—why was he being cursed out of nowhere?

With a shrug, he poked the spider monster’s rear again with his sword.

With a swish, the monster sprang up, rampaged around for a good while, then lay back down.

After a long moment, the mysterious figure reappeared, looking unsteady—likely having been hit by the spider monster.

“Damn it!” she cursed, glaring at Loyong.

This time, Loyong got a clear look—a delicate, lovely face, with golden hair and pointed ears.

“An elf?”

It was his first time encountering such a being.

“What are you staring at?!”

The elf’s temper seemed far from mild, her expression fierce as she limped into view.

It didn’t look like she was feigning injury—she’d definitely been knocked aside just now.

“Fine, I won’t look. It’s not like I want to!” Loyong pulled a scroll from his storage space—a return-to-town teleportation scroll.

“Hey, would you give me that Wish Scroll?” the elven girl asked.

“Why?” Loyong replied.

“I’ll trade you for it! What do you want?”

“What do you have?”

“I—” The elf paused, scrutinized Loyong, and said, “Necromancer is a rare class. I don’t have any gear you’d need…”

“Hey, don’t misunderstand—I’m not a necromancer… ahem, I’m a magic swordsman. I just use necromancy spells,” Loyong explained.

“Magic swordsman?” the elf echoed, clearly skeptical. “Is there a difference?”

“Why do you care? If you don’t need anything else, I’m leaving!” Loyong said, preparing to activate his teleportation scroll.

“Wait!” The elven girl, despite her injury, hurried forward. “At least tell me what you want. What would it take for you to give me the scroll?”

“I want a +10 level rune gem,” Loyong said bluntly.

The elven girl was dumbfounded, and it hit her all at once.

“Something like that doesn’t exist!” the elf shouted angrily. “I’ve never even seen one in my entire life!”

“But this is a Wish Scroll, isn’t it?” Loyong replied calmly, pulling out the scroll.

“You—” The elf glanced at the chamber behind her. “A +10 level rune gem has never existed; even a wish might not make one appear! But if you truly want it, I do have a +5 level rune gem—it can be socketed.”

“+5 levels?”

That was only half. Loyong hesitated.