## Chapter 120 – The Soul-Crushing Promotion Quest
After all that goddamn fuss and nonsense, there’s no loot?
It reeked of money at first glance, so I took a deep breath and even used the ultimate Flame Sword enchantment that eats away at durability. But I got nothing?
I couldn’t believe this reality. If I lost my mind here, the Teletubbies would probably show up with the Buddha in my heart.
I rummaged through the ground, hoping to find some fairy essence or something similar. There had to be something. Surely, there was something that could be turned into money. I sifted through the blackened leaves and turned over the soil.
And there was nothing.
“No, goddamn it, this is just going to cost me more in repair fees!”
The excitement of battle and the thrill of victory transformed into anger. Infuriated after a long time, I vented my frustration on innocent bushes and wildflowers with punches and kicks, trying to calm myself down.
“Aaaaaaaargh!!!!”
Well, it’s not like I gained absolutely nothing.
Fighting such a powerful opponent 1:1 was a first in my life.
Until now, I had mostly fought weaker opponents or in situations where I had the advantage to protect myself, so I couldn’t objectively gauge my skills.
But I had defeated the [vicious, evil, destructive, and violent serial killer, the ultimate fairy monster, the beast of the apocalypse itself, no different from a special-class criminal] known as ‘Dryad’ with my own strength.
That meant my combat power was at least higher than the Dryad’s.
Is this what the skills of a D-class adventurer are?
Figuring out my objective skill level was a reward in itself.
If I ever encountered a Dryad again, I could use this experience to defeat it more easily.
I didn’t get any items, but I gained plenty of experience and skill proficiency.
It was all experience that would become my blood and flesh.
“So now.”
Shall we finish the promotion quest?
I looked around.
“Kuh-uh-uh…”
Serka was lying on the ground, covered in blood, and Kusto, who seemed to have regained consciousness, was casting self-healing spells. Roel was having the easiest time, just fussing around Kusto.
I did everything from start to finish, goddamn it.
I beat up this crazy party, grabbed them by the scruff of their necks, and dragged them to victory. Those motherfucking sons of bitches were utterly useless, really.
I was pissed off, but at the same time, a strange sense of satisfaction filled me. I led these idiots to victory. With 100% of my own strength. Kim Kat grew. He matured and grew both personally and physically. Watching his own growth was quite enjoyable. Today’s harrowing experience would make me a better person.
“Hey, Serka! Get up!”
“Ugh… Th-the wounds…”
Serka tried to raise her head at my call but collapsed again.
Was she exhausted?
It seemed like she avoided fatal wounds, but her whole body was torn to shreds by sharp claws. She would have large scars all over her body. It might look cool on a man, but for a woman, I don’t know. A woman with scars all over her body, isn’t that a bit too much?
“Kusto!”
“Y-yes… Yes!”
“Come here and heal Serka! No. Heal me first.”
“I… I understand…”
Kusto, supported by Roel, approached me after finishing his self-healing.
He looked at Serka lying on the ground, but it was only natural that I received treatment first. A green light emanated with a small prayer. The healing, which scanned my body as if it were scanning, healed my body and infused it with vitality.
“I-it’s… done…”
“Then heal Serka now.”
I stretched and sat down a little distance away. It was getting dark. I had to recover my strength as much as possible and get out of the forest. I had to get the Konpeito too before that.
It was tough, but a night march was inevitable.
I couldn’t trust these guys enough to camp with them. Once we got out of the forest, there was only grassland to the city, so on a cloudless day like today, the moonlight would be enough to guide us.
“Kusto… Thanks.”
“I-it’s nothing… A-are you okay…?”
“Thanks to you. So now.”
It seemed like Serka’s treatment was over. She got up and rotated her shoulders. I, who had finished resting, also got up. Overall, the party members’ stamina was terrible, but we had to do what we had to do.
“Guys. Let’s go pick Konpeito now.”
“…Okay.”
We climbed the hill. I could see the scorched weeds. Would the Konpeito tree be okay? After catching the boss monster, if the fruit was all burned, praise the god of fire. I’d kill them all and commit suicide for real.
The Konpeito tree was scorched as expected.
I looked up with an uneasy heart, and fortunately, only a few of the fruits at the very bottom were scorched, and the rest seemed fine. We could get at least 10.
“Kusto. Roel. Serka. Now is the time for you to shine. You could say you were born for this moment. Go and pick the fruit.”
The tree was tall.
I was too tired, so I decided to leave it to the kids. I killed the Dryad by myself in the first place, so they should at least do this much. Quests are meant to be done together, not for one person to take on the burden and do it alone.
“It’s too high. How do we…”
Roel, who looked up at the tree, complained.
“If you three work together, it’s a piece of cake. Believe in the power of friendship.”
With that, I just trudged away, took a seat, and sat down. From a distance, I saw them discussing something, then Serka started climbing the tree and “Kyaaak!” She fell straight down. You stupid bitch.
But it was funny, so I’ll let it slide.
The three idiots put their heads together again, and now that they had a plan, Kusto gave Roel a piggyback ride. Roel tried to prune the branches with her staff, but couldn’t reach. Seeing that, Serka tried to climb on top of Roel, but failed. When the human tower collapsed, the three of them tumbled around.
I wondered when they were going to pick it, so I decided to lie down.
As I lay down and watched, I saw that they had somehow found a way. Roel and Kusto laid down on the ground, Serka climbed on top of them, jumped, and grabbed a branch.
Then, as if doing a chin-up, she climbed onto the branch and started picking the fruit. When she threw down the melon-sized Konpeito, Roel and Kusto caught it. The harvest continued in a very precarious way.
After what felt like 20 minutes, they succeeded in collecting 15 Konpeito.
Even if the trio who picked the fruit were exhausted, my stamina was fully recovered. I went closer and sorted the Konpeito. Two of the 15 were slightly burst, and two had small scorch marks. No commercial value, if this is the case.
Only 11 were intact.
“Hey, Roel. Can you eat this Konpeito?”
“…If you process it. It’s a bit much raw.”
“Is that so.”
I slowly put the Konpeito into the sack. I also picked leaves to use as cushions. I carefully packed them so that they wouldn’t get damaged, tied the sack, and handed it to Serka.
“Let’s have our Serka carry this.”
“…”
“Any complaints?”
“No. I’ll carry it.”
The sack was quite heavy. I didn’t have the confidence to carry it.
Serka hugged the sack.
“If the fruit breaks, I’ll kill you.”
“D-don’t worry.”
Let’s go back now. I had marked the way back and remembered it, so there would be no problem.
ㅡThud, thud.
I walked to get out of the forest.
The sun was setting. The sky was still dyed orange, but the forest, covered with bushes and bizarre plants, was very dark because of the shade. Should I speed up a little more?
“Let’s go faster.”
Too easily, the party’s speed automatically increased with just one word.
It is said that dragons can use the mystical power of Dragon Words to exert supernatural power simply by speaking. I don’t know exactly, but what I did was probably something similar. It’s a kind of language magic. In other words, it’s coercion or intimidation.
With that momentum, we got out of the forest around the time the sun went down. It was indeed the power of Dragon Words. When I stepped onto the prairie, the glittering starlight and the influence of the moons made the view clearer than inside the forest.
The moon was bright tonight.
The moons floating above the vast prairie became excellent lighting.
My shadow stretched long as I walked.
“Huff, huff…”
Serka started staggering, breathing heavily. She had also consumed a lot of stamina. It was a bit much for a woman’s stamina to carry that while being in such a battered state.
“Serka, are you tired?”
“…No. I’m not tired.”
“I thought you were. I thought you were tired.”
“…”
If she said no, then no. I was fine because I had rested earlier.
I sent Serka ahead again and walked at the rear, looking around.
What nocturnal monsters are there around here?
In fact, since it’s only a few hours away from the city, there aren’t many strong monsters living here. The Dryad in the forest was a special case. There’s always a chance, but I’m not too worried.
ㅡThump.
As I walked aimlessly, Serka collapsed.
In an instant, I had a fit and ran to snatch the sack she was holding.
Fortunately, the sack didn’t fall.
“Wh-what? What’s wrong with this guy? Hey, Kusto.”
I opened the sack, checked the inside, and called Kusto.
There was no damaged Konpeito.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“S-she seems exhausted… L-let’s rest a little…”
“No, you stubbornly walked until you were exhausted? Then let’s rest.”
It seemed like there were about two hours left to Isvant.
I left the nursing to Kusto and sat down to rest.
I wanted to go back to the inn quickly.
Well, even if I go now, the city gates won’t be open anyway. Even if I arrive early, I’ll have to wait until sunrise. So I’ll have to hang out outside for at least 6 to 8 hours.
If I go in in the morning, I’ll go to the guild, hand over the Konpeito, get promoted to D-class, stop by the blacksmith to leave my sword, buy groceries and alcohol, and then go to the inn.
I wanted to see Claudie’s face quickly.
I found out after spending just one day with these crazy guys. If you’re next to crazy people, you’ll get crazy too. I had to get away from these crazy guys as soon as possible for a good influence.
They were truly a disgusting group of people that I didn’t want to associate with.
A robber is better. Because they are demons who kill people without asking any questions. Since they have already deviated from the path of humans, it is very convenient and good to see them as something similar to harmful beasts and cut them off and kill them as soon as they are seen.
But guys like Roel and Serka live in a society where people live and deepen class discrimination, which can be said to be a real cancer that divides humanity.
It’s like pretending to be human, hiding behind people, and attacking people. It can be said to be worse than a robber. Because unlike a robber, you can’t kill them easily. Except for Serka.
People have a fighting instinct to fight against things that are different from themselves. They are deepening that. Why was the brutal white supremacist group KKK created? Why was Hitler, who plunged humanity into a pit of fear, born?
It was all Roel and Serka’s fault.
Thinking that way, I had no choice but to treat them harshly.
I’m getting angry again, goddamn it.
Damn Nazi bastards!
“Hey! Get up! Let’s go!”
“Ah, Serka is still not conscious…”
“Then you guys carry her. One person carries the sack and the other carries Serka.”
So we started again, but how could the already exhausted kids go properly? They collapsed again. Goddamn it. Nothing works out. Claudie. I miss you. I miss Copson, that son of a bitch, and I miss Elise and Maria. Winia… What the hell is Winia.
In the end, all I could do was doze off in that atmosphere and rest until morning. The sun began to rise. Serka, Roel, and Kusto, who seemed to have recovered some stamina, moved without complaint.
The walls of Isvant began to appear in the distance.
“You look terrible.”
“We suddenly encountered monsters.”
“You’ve been through a lot. Go in.”
It was time for breakfast when I passed through the city gates. As always, the guards were lax. They lived happily every day without doing anything, so they couldn’t be fierce.
I headed straight to the Adventurer’s Guild on the way I came in. No matter what, my heart started pounding as I got closer to the guild.
Kim Kat was finally being promoted to a D-class adventurer after about 3 years of living in this world. It was literally a soul-crushing promotion quest. I poured everything into it. Unlike my tired body and broken mentality, my steps were light.
Because it was time to receive the reward.
