Chapter 132: Cross-Dressing Girl 2
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/Week Wed-Sun
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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It was indeed a chaotic situation.
The large, gaping maw of the dead Giant Worm remained, the area now sullied with its viscous fluids.
Kaiden, who had jumped off the now inactive golem, had somehow reverted to Katie Wesley.
Moreover, they had cleared the floor without even using the broken golems.
When addressing issues, it's best to tackle them one at a time.
With the dead worm lying around and the half-panicked Katie Wesley, it seemed best to start there.
"What... why... how?"
"So, you were Katie Wesley, not Kaiden."
Perhaps Han Se-ah had the same thoughts, as she began to share with Grace and Irene the story of the Duke we had met in the blessed forest.
But technically, wasn't I the only one who had heard that story?
I 'should' be the only one who knew the secret.
How are you the one explaining it?
The saving grace was that Katie was visibly panicking while holding the necklace.
I realized that Han Se-ah knowing her secret seemed the least of her concerns.
After all, it's only natural for a runaway lady to panic when the treasured heirloom from her household might be damaged.
The magical armor Katie Wesley had was an old, worn armor passed down by her ancestors.
It's equipment that can be repaired and upgraded.
However, the necklace she had, a magical disguise artifact, was a different story.
"What happened, exactly?"
"Roland? Do you know a mage from the tower who specializes in magical artifacts or tools?"
She was fidgeting with the necklace, and then suddenly lunged at me as if a drowning person grasping for something.
Regardless of her stoic adventurer cosplay or anything else, the current crisis seemed to be her top priority.
Her urgency was evident in her changed tone.
Seeing her desperation, I subtly gestured towards Han Se-ah.
Though she may play a genius mage by utilizing the game's system and questions from her viewers, she should at least be able to read the effects of an item, right?
Only then did Katie recall that Han Se-ah was a mage and swiftly approached her.
"Um, it seems the inner magic circuit has completely disappeared, so I think it might be impossible to restore?"
"...Eek."
For Katie, it was like receiving a death sentence.
Her legs wobbled as if she might collapse at any moment.
Redirecting my gaze to Han Se-ah's stream,
[The Faded Essence of the Ancient Aurora]
A magical artifact that was once the treasure of a nation.
Crafted from a gem formed from condensed mana in the treacherous northern mountains, its inherent magic circuit has somehow vanished.
But its value as a gemstone remains.
The description of the necklace reminded me of a quest item or quest window.
-It's the runaway girl character quest
-A girl whose home was threatened by monsters and now a runaway girl who broke her precious heirloom.
-Isn't this about increasing mental age rather than increasing stars?
-This quest looks fun! Let's go get scolded by dad, the Duke.
...It does seem to be an actual character quest.
"So, there's no magical circuit left inside..."
"Don't you think it might be okay? If we go by what Hanna said, the circuit disappeared, but the interior isn't damaged. If we ask the mage who made it, they might be able to fix it."
"Well, it's an incredibly ancient artifact... There's a legendary tale that says a dragon, smitten with the kingdom, crafted it..."
"Um, well..."
Katie, looking dejected, seemed pitiful.
Irene, who had been trying to console her, went silent, unable to respond.
The others must've thought of it as just an expensive magical tool, but in its backstory, it's a treasured artifact of the kingdom handed down from antiquity, and a gift given to the Northern Duke's family.
The weight of this tale incomparably overshadowed the simple story of a girl who ran away from home.
The scale of this quest was undeniably larger.
Katie, her eyes pooling with tears, evoked such sympathy that Irene gave me a pleading look, as if urging me to do something.
But my specialty is physical combat, I dont know how to handle something like this.
"What if, instead of trying to repair it right away, we first uncover the cause? The fact that this massive corpse hasn't disappeared and that the artifact malfunctioned right after coming down from the golem seem connected."
"Yes, we definitely can't do anything about the artifact here."
While Katie was in despair, Irene trying to comfort her, and Han Se-ah checking the character quest were momentarily distracted, Grace voiced her logical opinion.
After all, as a player, it makes more sense to prioritize an ongoing scenario quest over a character quest that can't be completed at the moment.
With the broken necklace stored in her inventory, Han Se-ah approached the giant worm's corpse.
The hulking creature, which had spat out a mana stone but hadn't vanished, looked to be about 15 meters in length and its gaping mouth about 4 meters wide.
A quick online search revealed that an anaconda is typically around 4 meters, so this was nearly four times that size.
"I can't tell if it's covered in stone or just feels like stone, but it's incredibly hard. Well, I guess that's why it could withstand the blade of the golem."
"It has so many teeth, it's kind of creepy. Does the corpse remaining mean it's a creation of the Goddess?"
"Wow, it's huge. At this size, it could've swallowed all five of us in one bite."
The party members shared their impressions of the giant worm, the intimidating corpse looming with a mouth height of 4 meters.
When I tapped on its rocky skin, its tough resilience could be felt.
If it weren't for the knight-type golem's massive sword, the monster, with its tough skin, would have been too much for an intermediate adventurer's party to handle.
To tackle a creature like this, a coalition of dozens of adventurers from the 30th floor would need to set up a trap.
'...This doesn't seem like a boss monster one can take on alone. Did the golem absorb the mana from the artifact?'
Of course, the monsters in this world also possess mana.
They are creations of the benevolent Goddess, so they naturally have mana within them.
This is also why adventurers target the horns and hides of horned wolves outside the tower, even if they don't turn into mana stones upon death.
As a result, these large species of monsters not only have thick and sturdy hides but also naturally enhanced physical abilities.
When a large species monster appears, it's not a knight who steps forward, but entire knight divisions.
Even I, a naturally born 6, would have to exert all my strength to smash an adult ogre's limbs with my hammer and break its skull.
In game terms, it's absurd for a mere tank to solo a raid monster.
Yes, a raid monster.
Large monster species require the cooperation of a party, or even a raid party.
They're not something a single knight-type golem can easily defeat alone.
I might be able to kill it myself, but not easily.
Plus, there was a broken gigantic bow inside the hangar, as if to suggest the presence of a golem with the damage-dealing role.
"The corpse isn't disappearing and Roland also mentioned that this monster is from the southern deserts. Let's inspect the hangar."
"Right. We should hand over this golem and the worm's body to the magic tower."
Grace and Irene examining the Giant Worm wasn't out of hope that they might find something.
Naturally, I thought that perhaps Han Se-ah might discover something or that the system might update.
But since nothing was found, it seems the Giant Worm's corpse is just thata corpse.
Feeling a tinge of disappointment, I avoided the dripping slimy fluids and headed back to the hangar.
"...Oh, there's a place like this on the hangar wall?"
"Hanna discovered that she could infuse magic into the inner walls of the hangar."
Katie, who had been silent in front of the Giant Worm's corpse, spoke up.
Whether Irene's comforting touch had calmed her, or she was just naturally curious about the knight-type golem, was unclear.
-Should we start by fixing the broken golem?
-The boss is already dead, aren't we done here?
-Instead of showing the machine arm, can we see our northern brat*?
-Calling her 'brat' is a bit harsh, no?
-But the behavior is just like those of a brat, so does it matter?
It seems Katie has earned the nickname 'Northern Brat'.
With a lineup of 'P*rno Girl', 'Teacher Roland', 'Nunna*', 'Maman*', and now 'Brat', we fiddled with a mechanical arm inside what looked like a workshop inside the hangar.
Ding-ding!
Initiating Golem Repair Station B-301E
The voice of an unfamiliar woman echoed.
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