"Hehe. I guess I have officially become a part of Libation Fiesta now." Erwin smirked while patting Clovis’ shoulder.
"Indeed. I’m going to work you to the bone after this." Clovis nodded.
"Oh? Do you think I haven’t worked hard this whole time? And do you think that I’m not smart enough to finish my job faster than the expected time? However, I’ll complain if you just assign me another task once I finish mine faster." Erwin harrumphed.
"Yeah, yeah." Clovis paused for a moment. "So, I’m wondering if you want to have strength on par with a Tier 4?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Erwin tilted his head in confusion.
"Aren’t you curious about the reason for our abnormal strength?" Clvois smirked.
Erwin fell silent. Of course, even if the others didn’t notice it, Erwin would definitely think their power was weird. Talents alone weren’t enough to justify that power. In addition, Clovis only had a 15% evolution rate.
There might be something that no one can figure out. And the only thing that could match the description was the strength of the Hacfield family.
"External power, huh?" Erwin looked down, his hand brushing his chin. "I don’t really like getting stronger from external help."
"Is that so? I’m not going to force you, but what’s the difference between external power and good weapons and armor?"
Erwin raised his eyebrows. "So you’re saying it’s something like that?"
On the one hand, external power felt like it was never his to begin with. On the other hand, good weapons and armor were essential. At the end, even the power of his family or connection would play a part in defining him.
"I thought the external power was like a drug or something."
"Idiot. Do you think I’m going to destroy my future with drugs?" Clovis shook his head helplessly.
"Fair enough." Erwin crossed his hands, contemplating. "If it’s something like a weapon and armor, I don’t think I’ll mind. Then again, is there an item like that?"
Clovis took out a ring. "Wear this."
"What’s this?" Erwin grabbed the ring while furrowing his eyebrows. He didn’t know why he would take out this ordinary ring, but his opinion drastically changed the moment he put it on his middle finger.
"!!!" Erwin’s body convulsed for a second. "Kh? This is…"
Erwin looked shocked, his eyes staring at the ring. "What is going on? Why do I feel like my muscle is being torn for no reason?"
He tried clenching his fists a few times, noticing something different. "Mhmmm? My grip feels a bit stronger?" Erwin shuddered after experiencing this weird power. He raised his head and asked, "Clovis… What is this? I have never found something like this."
"It’s a bit hard to explain it, but you can treat it as the power of the Hacfield family." Clovis ended up shifting all the blame to his family like always. He was fortunate enough to have a big family that no one understood.
"This… I have never known that an ordinary ring like this can increase my strength. From the looks of it, there is no injection or physical modification that takes place." Erwin took it off and put it on several times to feel the change. "This is not a normal item anymore."
Erwin’s face became solemn as he halted his steps. There were only ten Tier 9 explorers in the world, each with their own mysterious abilities. Currently, the only thing that described this ring was the ’mysterious’ part of the Hacfield family.
Still, he heard that the Hacfield family had been destroyed. It was impossible if they had something like this.
With just this item alone, he realized the Hacfield family wasn’t destroyed. It was just a part of the scheme. And the reason why their enemies destroyed them might probably be related to this secret.
"Are you sure about giving this ring to me? What if I just sell this ring or information? I can probably get things beyond my imagination." Erwin frowned.
"If you are a person who can easily betray your friends, I won’t bother recruiting you, let alone showing this secret." Clovis shook his head.
Erwin smiled wryly. He couldn’t deny it since he didn’t intend to leave easily either. "If I may ask, how far are you planning to go, Clovis? Are you planning to become a Tier 9 like your grandfather and control the fate of countries? No, if you work together with your grandfather, you might be able to take over the world."
"No. Who cares about the world? My only goal remains the same. I want to become the greatest explorer by discovering the truth about this world being a mere simulation. Becoming a Tier 9 is just a part of the process." Clovis’ resolve became firm when he saw the glitch in the matrix that showed ’Mission Completed’ to him.
He couldn’t explain it yet, but as he continued onward, he might be able to discover more about it.
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.
"I see." Erwin closed his eyes. "It’s going to be an interesting journey. I want to observe all kinds of people, but you are going to be my primary subject of observation. I want to see what you will become in the future."
Clovis smiled. "Sure. This is going to be a long journey, Erwin."
"Sure it is." Erwin nodded.
"In that case, let’s go to the minibus first. I’ll show you the rest of your equipment. With this, let’s kill a lot of beasts and shock everyone, shall we?" Clovis winked playfully.
"Hehe. It’s going to be amusing to have Aileen’s cold face changed." Erwin smirked. "This way then."
When they were about to go to the minibus, they suddenly came to a halt as a woman was standing five meters before them. Both of them didn’t feel her presence, as if she were just a ghost.
They could only see her right eye as the other one was covered with her bang. Her black hair just created a contrast with her crimson pupil as though her eye had been dyed in blood.
But the most important thing was that when Erwin’s eyes met hers, he suddenly dropped to his knees while screaming in pain.
"Aaaaggghhhh!"