Chapter 9

“That was a great success!” Lyann spoke his thoughts loud.

“Maaah, I'm tired.” A pragmatic Krone replied him. “I spent almost all my mana with this quest. Wanna sleep now~.”

“Can't you be a bit cheerful? We completed our first quest after all. And that wasn't a small one.” Lion butted in the conversation.

“It's exactly because it's our first that I'm dead tired.”

“Let's continue this talk later. This isn't exactly the place and the moment.” Gwyneth put an end to the childish quarrel. Her teacher's aura helping her being heard by her former students.

While the two were ranting like an old couple, Farah and the others were reporting the quest completition.

“We have finished the quest receptionnist-san. Here are the mana stones as proof of subjugation!”

“A-already?” The receptionist, a middle-aged woman, asked. She was surprised. It was quite unusual for subjugation quests to be done in an afternoon. And this one was the subjugation of a whole den.

“Our abilities complement each others. It allows us to work fast and well.” Lion butted in.

“Is that so... It's pretty rare to see newcomers so eager to work. As expected from the aces of the Academy.”

The otherworlders bore awkward looks. “Please, we lack a lot of the experience required to be called an 'Ace'.”

“Fufu. The reward will be 50 silver coins and 30 coppers. Is it fine with you.”

They all nodded happily, receiving their first salary in all their lives.

“What the fuck is that?!” Lyann turned his head northward, surprising everyone. His sharpened senses caught something. The next instant, all the adventurers presents at the guild felt a wave of killing intent. And even though it wasn't destined to them, they couldn't help but feel like preys under a predator's eye.

The perturbation lasted for a minute or so before suddenly stopping. Only a faint smell of fear remained in the main branch's guild hall. The adventurers gathered here slowly resumed their diverse activities, breathing silent sighs of relief.

**

The day after his registration, Kyle went back to the Jaedes' adventurers guild in order to get some money, mostly for the taxes fees for the different cities he will come across. He spent the last night understanding and trying out some things about his gift.

The only things he knew was its name, “Mana Increase”, and that he actually a bottomless mana pool. Yukina's guess was that it was increasing his mana pool with a fixed multiplicar at a fixed interval of time. But this guess was bringing two others issues. First, how his body was able to withstand his mana pool. After some thinking, Yukina and Kyle came to the conclusion that Kyle's body was mutating to keep up with its power. It was eplaining the red color of his emitted mana and his physical prowess that were far stronger than a normal human's.

Second, how was the mana gathered. This world didn't contained a lot of mana so it was impsossible for it to give this much mana to a single individual. This mystery was still full.

When he pushed open the guild's entrance door, he saw the receptionnist from the last time hurrying in the back of the building. Slightly intrigued, he made his way to the counter. Well, he didn't relly made his way. Having learned of his last fight, most of the adventurers present here were making place for him to pass. Without minding them, he waited a couple of minutes at the counter.

Then, the receptionnist came back with a lean but well built guy. “Good morning, Kyle-san, this person here is this branch's guild master, Rowan-sama.”

“Nice to meet you, Kyle-san. I heard of how you defeated an A-rank adventurer in the blink of an eye.”

“Nice to meet you too.” Kyle replied with a stone face. Do you have some business with me?”

“Hrm, yes I have. Can we go to the back in order to talk further about it?”

“... Fine.”

They engulfed a flight of stairs and sat at the guild master's office. “I heard you were really strong.”

“...” Kyle silently starred back at him.

“Ahem! I have a request for you. Recently, there have been a monster that reapetedly assaulted the coasts around here. It is way too strong for a normal party of adventurers so I thought about your unusual combat strength...”

“What can I gain from this?”

“I can provide with an appropriate amount of money?”

Kyle pondered an instant. “Can you instead provide me with intel?”

“In which subject?” Asked the guild master, on the defensive.

“The black market.”

“B-but why?” His interlocutor was caught off-guard.

Kyle replied while lightly stroking his left cheek covered in scars. “...I have to repay them for something.”

Sensing some heavy background, Rowan didn't pried any further. “I don't have much but I should be able to help in this matter.”

“Then it's concluded. Where is this “monster”?”

Taken aback by this quick reply, the guild master replied automatically. “The Salt Kraken lurks in the sea, around here. If you stand on the beach long enough it should be attracted.”

“Is that so... Then I will take my leave.” Kyle quickly left the room, and then the guild.

The guild master stood up and spoke to the receptionist. “Clara, I will leave the guild to you for a moment.” He then activated his Stealth Gift and silently followed Kyle. 'This guy is definitely interesting.' He thought.

**

After a few minutes of walking, Kyle reached the shoreline. He was standing there for half an hour when the surface of the sea bulged. Slightly for starters and then higher and higher. Yellowish-white horns emerged from the water. And then a water geyser soared, seemingly reaching the sky.

The emerged part of the monster was more than 15 meters tall. A woman’s bust that changed in tentacles covered in seaweeds starting from the hips. It, or more like she, had four palmed arms. Her horned face was emaciated, with a nose seemingly cut. Her ears were doubled with gills and her green eyes had vertical narrow pupils. A few dozens 10 meters long salt spears were surrounding like a crown.

“Your mana, it kind or resembles mine.” Kyle was curious.

“Becaussse your mana created me.” Her voice was both rough and hissing like a serpent’s. Kyle tilted his slightly his head.

“They sssaid I would become a goddesss. They tied me and forcefully injected my body with unmeasssurable amount of mana. The pain when I changed, the pain when I realized, that I was a failure. And finally the agony of being discarded.” Kyle was somehow able to relate, and thus, remained silent. “And it was ALL YOUR FAULT!” Loosing her spirit, the Salt Kraken launched at him twelve of her salt spears.

With a slight burst of mana, Kyle destroyed the sharp weapons. He snorted. “Weak.” And he wasn’t speaking of her failed attempt at hurting him.

“How can you know!? Do you know how much pain I suffered?”

“This mana was mine, I felt everything.” He continued with a menacing voice. “Come grab your deliverance.” He released his own mana, crushing everything in a ten meters radius and slowly elevated in the air. A wide grin appeared of his face and the Salt Kraken felt threatened by an unbelievable killing intent. She shuddered before pulling herself together. Kyle summoned ten spears. They were pitch-black, giving off an eerie vibe.

“You dare copy my own skill? You can’t think of taking me down like this!” She smiled.

Kyle said nothing, only launching his spears in irregular trajectories. He summoned them continuously, pushing the Salt Kraken on the defensive, slashing the black weapons with her white spears. When she deflected all the blows, she started summoning ten meters tall salt pillars, in order to throw them. Lucky her. A flying object, non other than Kyle himself, struck the pillars, blowing them to abrasive dust and repelling the poor opponent. along with the sea. He then summoned two spears. Charged with red lightning, they were only about 150 centimeters tall but nobody couldn’t perceive the powerful aura they were releasing. These arrows of death struck both at the heart and the head of the still stunned monster and exploded, vaporizing the sea. Then, summoning with his own mana his favorite greatsword, he leapt forward and stroke her head with full power, his muscles also reinforced by circulating his mana. And when his blow pierced the skull, he released through his blade 80% of his current mana, causing a mind-blowing explosion of sheer power.

After the sea claimed back its rightful place, not much remained from the Salt Kraken. Only some hollow bones were floating in a pond of blue-greenish blood.

**

The guild master, Rowan, witnessed the whole scene. ‘This guy is no joke, he is a monster.’ A drop of sweat, not the first, rolled down his already drenched forehead.

*****

After a week of well-earned rest, the group of otherworlders, now adventurers, came back to Swordhold’s adventurers guild in order to get their next quest. As they the busy building, they heard a lot of chatter and whispers, all seemingly revolving around the same topic. Farah lent a careful ear, followed by Lyann and his overdeveloped senses.

“You heard of the sea monster that attacked quite a few times the north-east coast?”

“The Salt Kraken? Everybody knows it with the number of A-ranked parties that broke their teeth on it. This monster is on another level.”

“Heh, some days ago, a newbie adventurer, the guy registered the day before it, took it down in less than an hour.”

“What!? How is it even possible?”

“The guild master of Jaedes witnessed everything. This guy fought by overpowering the Salt Kraken with its own technique! And he gained quite a bit from it. Now he is known as Kyle Dawnstar, the Dusk’s Angel.”

Another adventurer butted in. “I heard he was heading for Brook now. I wonder why, there is nothing there...”

The otherworlders quickly consulted within themselves and then picked one particular request on the quest board before bringing it the receptionist.

“Investigate the possible monster flood in Rook’s vicinity? Why?” The receptionist asked. They remained silent.