novelraw Chapter 50: Preparing for the Fifth Scenario
Chapter 50: Preparing for the Fifth Scenario
“Soul coins?” Michelle tilted her head slightly. “I’ve got a decent amount saved up. I haven’t really spent much since we started. Right now, I’ve got 1,780 soul coins. Before visiting the Ranger’s Guild this morning, I was close to three thousand.”
“That should be more than enough,” I said with a nod, doing a quick mental calculation. “You’ve got two paths to choose from here. First, you can buy skill books to learn these skills. Together, they’ll cost around 1,500 soul coins.”
“I see… What’s the second option?” Michelle asked.
“For the second option, you’ll need to go to the Mage’s Guild and hire a magic instructor to teach you those skills directly. It’s cheaper overall, but the process might take a bit longer—No, much longer if your natural aptitude for magic isn’t high. What do you choose?”
But at the same time, choosing the second option will also determine if you’re truly fit to walk this unique path. I didn’t say this to her, but she should get the gist of it. The first option guaranteed quick results, but the second option would test her compatibility as well as her determination.
Michelle fell silent for a moment, thinking it over.
Although Magic Lumberjack was a class that focused heavily on axe-based combat, archery remained a significant component, especially long-range attacks supported by elemental magic. Learning how to harness mana and manipulate it would not only benefit her future class but also empower her new archery techniques.
“The first one’s faster,” she said, “but I want to make sure I’m truly ready for this path. I’ll go to the Mage’s Guild and do it the hard way.”
I gave her a small grin. “Good choice. It seems you understand the purpose of all this better than ever.”
She nodded with confidence and determination. “I know I’ve been holding you and Boris back. If this helps me close the gap, then I’ll do it.”
With that, Michelle turned on her heel and headed back toward the main plaza, where the Mage’s Guild was located. Her resolve was admirable, and I had no doubt she’d see it through. Choosing her as part of the party back then was not the wrong choice, after all.
In the meantime, my stomach was already growling. I decided it was time for a well-earned break. I grabbed a quick lunch from one of the nearby stalls—a grilled meat skewer and some vegetable stew—and sat down under the shade of a tree near the training grounds to enjoy it. It was quite decent, even though I started to miss junk food at this point.
Ha, a former God-King missing eating junk food. How ironic.
After refueling, I resumed my training regimen, once again repeating Wind Rush and weaving in Predator’s Step for as long as my stamina would allow. The afternoon sun beat down as I sprinted, twisted, pivoted, and dashed in wide arcs and sharp angles around the field.
Wind Rush was already familiar to me, but Predator’s Step required much more finesse and spatial awareness to trigger its passive footwork boost consistently. I had to remain aware of my positioning, the ground beneath my feet, and the imagined presence of enemies around me.
Eventually, the System chimed again.
Your Stamina has increased by 1.
Predator’s Step has leveled up.
Predator’s Step was a much harder movement skill to level up compared to Wind Rush, but I finally managed to level it up once. Still, I wasn’t sure if I could keep leveling either of those skills with this kind of repetitive training. Maybe the only way to improve it further was through real battles.
Finding it was already late afternoon, I decided it was time to return to the inn and rest for the day. But before that, there was one important matter I needed to discuss with both Boris and Michelle. Fortunately, Boris was already in the inn, enjoying a mug of ale, and I didn’t have to wait long before Michelle joined us at the inn.
“You’re just in time,” Boris greeted me with a grin, setting aside his mug. “I’ve gathered even more intel and was waiting for you and Michelle to go over the next scenario.”
“Really?” I raised an eyebrow and took a seat.
Michelle, who had just arrived, slipped into the seat beside me. “I met with the Mage’s Guild and hired an instructor for learning Mana Sense and Mana Manipulation, though I’ve only barely learned Mana Sense.”
That’s very quick! With her progress, it shouldn’t take more than two to three days to master both skills. She’s really a genius… Considering that Michelle was just a lumberjack’s daughter, her rate of progress was off the charts.
“Good. Then, let’s make sure that we’re all on the same page for the next scenario.” I tapped the table between us. “The fifth scenario will be very different than the previous four, and it requires coordination and information. We know it involves hunting those stag heads and activating the scattered altars, but the more heads we place, the stronger the final spirit stag becomes.”
“That is without a doubt.” Boris nodded firmly. “What I learned today is that the fifth scenario cannot be repeated—it’s a one-time-only deal.”
Ah, right. Scenarios that included significant boss encounters—like those ending in multiples of five or ten—often couldn’t be repeated. That restriction meant that we must do the best we could to gain the most in this scenario, as there were no second chances.. After all, this scenario was the best at giving rewards that could go a long way.
“This means,” I said, leaning forward, “we have to give it everything we’ve got. If we want to maximize the gains, we’ll need to take calculated risks.”
Michelle nodded, then furrowed her brows. “So we’ll have to decide how many stag heads we’re comfortable turning in before we fight the boss. Is there a limit?”
“There are five altars in total,” Boris answered. “Each one is progressively harder to light. And the more altars you activate, the stronger the boss and the better the loot you get. From what I’ve heard, nobody’s ever managed to light up more than three. Clearly, there’s a balance to be struck. Go too low, and you miss out. Go too high, and you risk being wiped out.”
Five altars, huh? I wondered briefly if Scenario Manipulation could boost the count, but that was far too risky without knowing how fierce the monsters and the boss even activating five of them would be.
“Then our goal should be four to five heads,” I said. “We should aim for the highest number possible, especially since we have been able to clear the toughest extra conditions on every prior scenario. If we set traps in advance and coordinate our attack, we can handle it.”
Of course, I was planning to get as strong as possible in the meantime. However, with the duel against Graham coming up and Istellia’s decree, we should challenge this scenario within the next three to four days at the latest. Any longer than that might bring unknown variables to the table.
Both Michelle and Boris agreed to my suggestion with a nod. They’d grown accustomed to my style of challenging the scenarios and had expected me to choose the most challenging path. Because only by doing this would I be able to achieve my goal of reclaiming my throne and uncover what was the reason for my fall…
Seeing their resolve, I allowed myself a small smile. “Then it’s settled. One‑time scenario or not, we’ll squeeze every drop of reward out of it.”
Boris lifted his ale. “To our goal. And to getting stronger together.”
Michelle raised her mug alongside his. “Here’s to success.”
We clinked mugs and drank deeply. This would be our toughest trial yet and our greatest opportunity. We couldn’t afford to let it slip through our fingers.
***
I spent the next two days training relentlessly alongside Boris and Michelle. Michelle was mostly focused on mastering both Mana Sense and Mana Manipulation, so she only joined us in the afternoon. Since leveling up my movement skills had become noticeably more difficult, I shifted my focus toward sparring with Boris to improve my hand-to-hand combat techniques and to learn martial arts.
Boris was an absolute monster in close-quarters combat. No matter how many times we sparred, I couldn’t manage a single win without a weapon. Even when I used Wind Rush and Predator’s Step to evade his attacks and land quick hits, it wasn’t enough to crack through his defenses. Even without activating his Iron Body signature skill, he was still as tough as a rhino and as strong as a gorilla. It felt like going up against a grizzly bear in the form of a human.
And yet, despite never besting him in unarmed combat, I made real progress. I could feel my reflexes and instinct sharpened, and my movements became smoother. I was closing the gap, even if only slightly.
Maximillian Anderson Lv. 33/40 (EXP 56/1,020)
HP: 100%
Rank: Bet [2]
Patron God: Istellia (Goddess of Imagination)
Class: Paradox Incarnate
Title: The Unyielding Survivor (3)
Status: Normal
Strength: 104 + 18 | Dexterity: 105 + 5 | Stamina: 70 + 13
Mind: 52 | Magic Power: 48 | Luck: 104
Plausibility: 672
Free Attributes: 233
Signature Skill(s): [@!$# Creation], [Fabled Vessel], [Grant Plausibility], [Scenario Manipulation]
Skill(s): [Basic Alchemy Lv.5], [Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat Lv.5], [Basic Shield Mastery Lv.4], [Basic Spearmanship Lv.10], [Basic Swordsmanship Lv.10], [Desperate Willpower Lv.5], [Heavy Slash Lv.3], [Heavy Stab Lv.3], [Inspect Eye Lv.2], [Inventory], [Mana Manipulation Lv.1], [Mana Sense Lv.3], [Mental Tolerance Lv.4], [Negotiation Lv.4], [Night Vision], [Pain Tolerance Lv.4], [Poison Resistance Lv.1], [Projectile Defense Lv.1], [Predator’s Step Lv.2], [Wind Rush Lv.3]
In addition to sparring with Boris, I also trained against Michelle and several other divine warriors. Thanks to her rising stats and relentless effort, Michelle was becoming more difficult to beat with each passing session. Her skills were improving rapidly, and I couldn’t help but feel that if I didn’t raise my own stats soon, I might start losing our duels outright.
The same couldn’t be said for most of the other divine warriors. While each had their own quirks and personal fighting style, it was clear that the majority lacked proper combat training before arriving in Fantasia. Some relied too heavily on raw stats, while others simply froze under pressure. Only a handful of them managed to give me a slight challenge, though none were able to land a clean hit, thanks to my high Dexterity and erratic movement skills.
“If this is the quality of most divine warriors in Fantasia, then we’re going to have a hard time in the Battle of Divine Will…” I whispered to no one.
Nevertheless, these people were only Bet-rank divine warriors. Gimmel-rank and above divine warriors would definitely have more experience and combat prowess, so it wouldn’t be fair to judge the entire divine warrior force based on the average ones I encountered here. Besides, I wasn’t relying on them either.
But I couldn’t help but be a bit concerned about the future.