SWNOVELXO Chapter 111 - General Quest (1)
Chapter 111. General Quest (1)
Pop-.
The cap of the High-Grade Mana Enhancement Elixir opened with a cheerful sound.
Gulp-.
The thick liquid slid down Yuri’s throat in an instant.
The cold elixir that reached his stomach quickly turned into a warm heat that spread throughout his entire body.
‘It’s warm.’
This was his third time, following the Low-Grade Elixir and the Black Sword Corps’ Captain-level Elixir.
Still, the foreign sensation forming in his stomach felt incredibly awkward.
But those feelings were fleeting.
Yuri closed his eyes and focused, guiding the mana that spread throughout his body.
Ssss-.
The heat that started in his stomach soon transformed into a refreshing coolness, and a faint shimmer began to rise from Yuri’s entire body.
As Yuri guided the mana along the mana road he had learned, the dispersed mana started to gather directly into his core.
The mana core slowly grew.
Two hours passed this way.
Hoo-.
A faint golden breath was exhaled from Yuri’s mouth and nose.
He opened his eyes, gently rubbed his lower abdomen, and tilted his head.
“How come… the effects are so… lacking?”
What he had just consumed was a High-Grade Elixir.
It was supposed to increase his mana much more than the Low-Grade Elixir he had taken previously.
However, it was still far inferior to the elixir from the Black Sword Corps that he had received thanks to Greta.
Not only did it fall short in the amount of mana it increased, but its purity was also significantly lower.
‘It’s labeled as High-Grade, but its purity is similar to that of a Low-Grade Elixir, with only a larger amount of mana.’
Did I take it incorrectly?
Perplexed, Yuri grabbed a Medium-Grade Elixir and swallowed it immediately.
Another hour or two passed.
“Hmm?”
He tilted his head again as he awoke, then grabbed a Low-Grade Elixir and drank it down.
More time passed.
Hoo-.
“Aha.”
Exhaling a golden breath, Yuri finally nodded as if he understood everything.
“It wasn’t that I took it incorrectly.”
There was nothing wrong with the High, Medium, or Low-Grade Elixirs he consumed.
Each elixir performed exactly as expected according to its grade.
It was just that the elixir from the Black Sword Corps was incomparable and far more potent.
Even if he combined all the other elixirs he had taken, they couldn’t match a single dose of the Black Sword Corps’ elixir.
‘Even the highest-grade elixir might have more mana but lower purity than the Black Sword Corps’ elixir.’
The elixir from the Black Sword Corps boasted such an extraordinary purity.
Once again, Yuri was left marveling at the Black Sword Corps’ elixir. He took the last remaining Low-Grade Elixir and consumed it as well.
Yuri indulged in the luxury of consuming four elixirs in a single day.
Burp-.
He forced out a non-existent burp and smiled contentedly.
“Now that feels good.”
Yuri patted his stomach.
He had been sitting still for hours.
Moreover, he had been fasting to ensure he absorbed the elixirs well.
Despite that, Yuri felt incredibly full right now.
‘Is it the size of a fist now?’
Even though the purity had dropped considerably since a few hours ago, the size of his mana core was now distinctly larger than when it had been the size of a couple of eggs.
Especially compared to when he first entered the cradle.
Back then, his mana core had been the size of a walnut—its current growth was remarkable.
The most encouraging fact was that this growth had occurred within just two months.
‘It’s been a little over two months since I entered the cradle, and it’s grown this much?’
He could now clearly understand why Johan had wanted him to enter the cradle.
Why Johan had said there was no better place than the cradle for someone with talent to build their strength.
There was likely no place in the world where obtaining elixirs was this easy.
Yuri couldn’t help but wonder how much his mana core would grow by the time his stay in the cradle ended.
With a slight smile, he got up from his seat and picked up his sword.
Yuri pointed the sword straight ahead and stared intently at its tip without any expression.
Immediately, the sword began to change.
Woong-.
A faint vibration hummed from the blade as a clear sheen and a spark of lightning emerged.
Pzzzzt- sizzle-.
The lightning that wrapped around the sword gradually thickened, but suddenly, as if the energy had discharged, it disappeared completely.
However, this was only for a brief moment.
Crackle-crackle-crackle-.
Much more lightning surged up, causing the sword to glow red.
Finally, the sword was entirely engulfed in red.
Yuri swung the sword, which now looked like it had been heated in a fire.
Sssss-.
The sharp sound of the blade slicing through the air was audible.
The blade was so sharp that it easily split the air, even with a light swing.
A small murmur escaped from Yuri’s lips.
“…It’s done.”
Looking at the sword he had completed, a faint smile spread across Yuri’s face.
It had been less than a month since Theresia had told him about the stages of Strength, Softness, Transformation, Magic, and Nature.
Yuri had succeeded in executing the Flowing Sword, which was practically the hallmark of an officially recognized 2nd-tier swordsman.
‘It consumes more mana than I expected. I don’t think I can maintain it for long…’
At most, he could probably sustain it for a few minutes, but the fact that he had succeeded was an achievement in itself.
‘Next up is the Flaming Sword, right?’
Riding the momentum, Yuri tried to take on the Flaming Sword next.
But.
Crackle-crackle-crackle-.
The lightning flickered precariously as if it were about to extinguish.
Ultimately, the intense flames of the Flaming Sword did not ignite.
After several more attempts, Yuri scratched his cheek and gave up.
“This one isn’t happening.”
Although the resonance rate had already reached 90%, Yuri hadn’t been able to use the Flowing Sword before due to a lack of mana.
While the Flowing Sword had been achieved relatively easily, the Flaming Sword was a different challenge altogether.
‘The problem isn’t just the amount of mana, but also the resonance rate.’
The 5% difference in resonance rate between the Flowing Sword and the Flaming Sword wasn’t something that could simply be expressed in numbers.
Even when he tried to match the resonance rate, something kept feeling off, as if it was slipping away.
‘It won’t be easy.’
It seemed he would need more practice to execute the Flaming Sword.
‘No, it might be better to further master the Flowing Sword first.’
Despite failing to execute the Flaming Sword, Yuri’s face remained bright.
‘There are still 10 months left…’
With the completion of the Flowing Sword today, the only tasks Johan had left for him were mastering the Flaming Sword, the Demonic Sword, and perfecting the Demonic Technique.
Plus, his personal goal of achieving the Sacred Sword.
He still had many milestones to reach, but Yuri wasn’t in a hurry.
‘There’s plenty of time.’
Yuri was growing steadily… yet rapidly.
And no one knew this better than Yuri himself.
Three days had passed since the day Yuri perfected the Flowing Sword.
Near the forest where Yuri and Theresia’s residence was located.
Thunk- thunk-.
A pickaxe carved out of wood struck the ground fiercely.
Thunk- thunk-.
After dozens of strikes, a large pit was formed.
Arin, who had been staring blankly at the pit she had created, threw down the pickaxe in frustration.
Thud!
“Damn it! What the hell is this!”
Yuri, who had been watching her from behind, hurriedly ran over and quickly picked up the pickaxe.
“Hey, you shouldn’t throw precious tools around like that!”
Yuri handed the pickaxe back to Arin.
But what was the point?
Thud!
Arin threw it again.
“I hate this!”
“Hey, that’s not right. Our dear Arin, you’re such a good girl, aren’t you?”
Like comforting a child having a tantrum, Yuri gently placed the pickaxe back into Arin’s hands and patted the back of her hand.
Perhaps that worked because this time Arin didn’t throw the pickaxe again.
Instead, she glared at Yuri, fuming.
“Why on earth do I have to do this?”
Yuri responded flatly, “Didn’t you ask me to get you a house?”
“I asked you to find me a house, not to… not to…”
Arin’s voice trembled as she shouted loudly, “…not to build one!”
In response, Yuri wagged his index finger side to side.
“Tut tut, you really don’t get it, do you?”
“…?”
“A house is always best when it’s built with your own hands.”
Hearing those brazen words, Arin’s hand, which held the pickaxe, trembled with rage.
She growled, “Fine, let’s say, for argument’s sake, that a house built with your own hands is the best. But…”
Arin pointed to the pit she had dug.
“Why am I digging the ground? I wanted a house above the ground!”
“That’s the foundation where your house will stand. So dig deeper unless you want to end your life by crashing down with your house while sleeping.”
“Ugh…”
“And besides, you agreed to build the house with your own hands.”
“…Yes, I agreed. Sure, I definitely agreed to build a house. But… but…”
At that point, Arin exploded again.
She gestured wildly around her as she yelled.
“What kind of house is this? This is… no, this is a village!”
Arin pointed with her finger.
There, centered around the crack, wooden pillars had been erected in various spots across the wide clearing, all visible within sight.
The problem was that the area enclosed by those pillars was so vast that it was hard to believe it was meant for a single person’s house.
In response to Arin’s remark, Yuri waved his hand dismissively.
“Come on, it’s not that big. It’s better to build it big from the start rather than expanding it later because it feels cramped. No point in doing the job twice, right?”
“Isn’t it more strange that you think this is small?”
“Well? You’ll understand later.”
“Hoo…”
Arin sighed and looked up at the sky.
No matter how much she complained, it didn’t change anything.
‘It was foolish of me. I shouldn’t have trusted this guy!’
A few days ago.
Yuri had shown up as promised on the second day.
When he told them to follow him, she was so happy, thinking he was going to keep his promise.
But then what happened?
He led them to an empty clearing and all he said was…
[Let’s build the house together! I’ll help you!]
…that.
At first, she thought, How long could it possibly take to build a house? and agreed.
Exactly 30 minutes after saying those words, Arin regretted it.
When Yuri handed her a pickaxe and told her to start digging.
‘I should have run away back then.’
He had said he would help, but in reality, Yuri was just making them do all the work.
As Arin’s shoulders trembled in frustration, Yuri’s indifferent voice reached her ears.
“Don’t be so negative. Look over there and take a lesson from them. Just think of this as training, not labor.”
Yuri pointed to a spot.
There stood Theresia, swinging her spear at a tree with fierce focus.
Swish, swish, swish-.
Her spear poked holes at regular intervals.
But something didn’t seem right.
Frowning slightly, she tilted her head and moved to stand in front of another tree.
She adjusted her posture as if she were facing a life-or-death opponent.
Swish, swish, swish-.
Her spear quickly pierced the tree again.
Beside her, thud-, Poppy, who was shirtless, carried a log on his shoulder.
But he didn’t seem satisfied with the weight, so he frowned slightly and grabbed another log lying nearby, placing it on his shoulder.
Finally, with a look of satisfaction, Poppy began to move the logs to the designated area, his large, rippling muscles twitching with each movement.
Watching them, Arin stuck out her tongue.
‘How can they… adapt so easily to this situation?!’
Arin was particularly bewildered by Theresia.
‘It makes sense for Poppy, but why doesn’t that senior have any complaints?’
It was already surprising enough to find a senior from the 49th batch here, but what was even more surprising was how cooperative she was with Yuri’s plans.
It was almost as if she was being blackmailed into it.
As Arin wore a sullen expression, Yuri smiled and said, “Come on, let’s finish up so we can eat lunch!”
At the mention of lunch, Arin’s ears perked up.
Her frustration noticeably eased.
“…What’s for lunch today?”
When Yuri had brought Poppy and Arin here, he had promised to provide food and shelter for them.
Then he had built a small shack for Poppy, who was too big to enter the crack, and for Arin, who refused to stay underground.
Of course, Arin wasn’t happy with it.
It wasn’t what they had agreed upon in the first place.
But even so, there was a reason she held back her anger.
Moreover, there was a reason she begrudgingly did the tasks Yuri asked, even though she could have run away at any time.
It was because of the food Yuri provided.
Gulp-.
Seeing Arin swallow as she asked about lunch, Yuri smiled and answered, “You can look forward to it. I put in some extra effort for today’s lunch.”
“R-really? Even better than yesterday?”
“Of course.”
“Wow!”
“So, let’s finish this up quickly and have lunch.”
“Got it!”
Arin nodded and eagerly resumed digging with the pickaxe.
Her face was now beaming, as if she had never been annoyed.
Seeing this, Yuri smiled contentedly.
‘She’s definitely from a well-off family.’
Theresia was the same.
If they were like those who had lived rough lives on the streets, it would have been different.
But those from well-to-do families had been accustomed to lavish tastes before entering the cradle.
After spending a long time in the cradle, eating dry, flavorless rations, it was only natural that they would start craving something better.
So what would happen when they finally got a taste of something with actual flavor?
‘They’d go crazy for it.’
Thanks to this, Yuri was able to easily make use of top-tier individuals like Theresia and Arin for such menial tasks.
Hahaha.
His contented smile slowly turned mischievous.
But before Arin could notice, Yuri quickly wiped the grin off his face and looked at the pillars rising one by one.
At that moment, a faint madness gleamed in Yuri’s clear eyes.
‘This is just the beginning.’