Dadaupa Gorge, Forest Path.
Under the ordinary wind glider, shadows caressed Fischl's snow-white back, while the incoming breeze lifted the hem of her purple-black dress, revealing the triangular black silk bodysuit underneath.
One leg was clad in semi-transparent black tights, while the other wore an over-the-knee garter stocking, revealing a glimpse of her pale thigh.
This subtle asymmetry surprisingly complemented Fischl's striking appearance and unique personality.
Balancing herself, she gently landed on the muddy ground, retracting her wind glider. Nolan followed suit.
Ahead, they spotted a group of dark hilichurls blocking the path.
"These hilichurls are such a nuisance, setting up a watchtower right in the middle of the road," Nolan said, slightly exasperated.
As adventurers, encountering such a situation meant they were obligated to clear it if they had the ability.
"Hmph~ Stupid Attendant, this is perfect. Join me in vanquishing them!" Fischl declared, her hand glowing with a bright light that materialized into a longbow.
"Yes, Your Royal Highness."
Nolan responded, drawing his Dull Blade. The glint of the blade seemed to catch the hilichurls' attention, and they immediately noticed the two intruders.
"YA!"
Through Nolan's golden Eye of Judgment, he saw two level-20 hilichurl berserkers and several lower-level hilichurls charging toward them.
"Stupid Attendant, you handle the front. I will target their archers and shamans!" Fischl commanded, raising her arm parallel to her shoulder, revealing the unguarded pale skin under her arm. She pulled the bowstring, and purple lightning began to envelop the arrow.
"Got it," Nolan agreed readily. He also had the exact same intention.
Intense flames wrapped around his blade. With a powerful leap, his sturdy adventurer boots broke the air barrier, swiftly maneuvering between the trees. The next moment, the reflective sword tip sliced through the neck of a hilichurl berserker.
Blood spurted out as the hilichurl berserker, propelled by its remaining momentum, stumbled forward a few steps before collapsing.
*[Defeated A Powerful Enemy, Obtained 433 Adventure EXP.]*
Ignoring the notification on his character panel, Nolan swiftly dispatched two nearby hilichurls before directing his sword toward another berserker.
With his current strength, he could easily one-shot enemies lower than his level, thanks to his weapons, artifacts, personal skills, and character specialties.
*Adventure EXP +133*
*Adventure EXP +153*
*Adventure EXP +392*
After taking down three more monsters, Nolan glanced at the watchtower, noticing that Fischl and Oz had already cleared out the hilichurl archers and shamans.
The bodies had precise, lightning-imbued arrows embedded in their foreheads, including one hidden in the bushes.
"When did your archery become this accurate?" Nolan asked in surprise, looking at Fischl.
Although Fischl's archery skills were not bad, he had previously estimated her proficiency to be around level four or five.
Now, from such a distance, to hit so many hilichurls in the forehead and penetrate their bone masks—this must be around level seven or eight in proficiency.
Improvement this rapid, could it be that you're cheating too? Nolan thought with a slight smile.
"Hmph! The Princess has always been like this!" Fischl put away her bow, raising her fair chin slightly with a look of pride.
"In fact, Miss Fischl practiced the archery technique recorded on the Dvalin scale all night and learned some useful skills," Oz said, having just finished off the last hilichurl and flying back to the blonde girl's side with a flutter of his dark wings.
"Oz, you talk too much!"
Fischl placed her hands on her hips, her fingers pressing against the slight translucence of her pale skin showing through the black stockings on her abdomen, expressing her annoyance.
"What?!" Nolan's face showed surprise. "You learned an Arcane-Level archery technique that quickly?"
"For the Prinzessin der Verurteilung of the Immernachtreich, no knowledge is beyond grasp with a mere glance," Fischl replied, her lips forming a soft arc.
"As expected of the Princess," Nolan said with a smile.
Of course, Fischl couldn't have mastered it with just a glance. The secret likely lay within that scale.
Nolan then destroyed the watchtower the hilichurls had built in the middle of the path, collecting the dropped materials, primarily their bone masks. He had to admit, the hilichurls were indeed quite ugly beneath those masks, no wonder they wore them.
No wonder even they themselves disliked it.
After clearing up, the two continued onward. It wasn't long before they reached the shallow lake, or rather, the shallow swamp at the heart of Dadaupa Gorge.
On their way, they had spotted it from afar while flying with their wind gliders.
Meanwhile, Nolan had taken back the Dvalin scale from Amy and studied it. He discovered that the archery technique recorded by Venti on the dragon scale was actually a form of memory transfer.
It was easily imprinted in one's mind, which explained how Fischl managed to grasp the basics overnight and incorporate the techniques into her archery.
"The fundamental parts of this archery technique are manageable, but the advanced sections involve wind elemental power, which doesn't suit Miss Fischl very well. Therefore, she couldn't practice it to a high level," Oz explained.
He had watched over Fischl's training the previous night and thus knew a bit about this "Divine Generation Archery."
Even without mastering the higher levels, the basics alone were beneficial for Fischl, given that it was an arcane-level technique.
Nolan, relying on his mastery of several max-level ordinary archery skills as base, managed to grasp the basics as well, likely quicker than Amy.
*[Skill Acquired: Divine Generation Archery · Arcane Level Lv.1 (1/5000)]*
'Holy crap, a skill that requires five thousand Adventure EXP to level up. When will I ever max this out? With that many Adventure EXP, I could raise my overall level significantly,' he thought.
They trudged along the dirt path, their shoes caked in yellowish mud. During Nolan's practice, they had unknowingly reached the shallow water area at the heart of Dadaupa Gorge, where a semi-transparent energy shield sealed the sword cemetery.
A woman with long black hair and half-rimmed glasses was pacing back and forth there, looking rather troubled.
"Why haven't they arrived yet?" Dr. Livingstone muttered to herself, her curved forefinger pressed against her chin.
Even as the two approached, she seemed lost in her own world, oblivious to their presence. Finally, Nolan spoke up, breaking the silence.
"Hello, are you Dr. Livingstone?"
"Eh? Oh, hello there. Sorry, I was a bit distracted. Yes, I'm Livingstone. And you are?" She adjusted her glasses, looking at the young man and woman with a hint of confusion.
"We're here to help with the sealed sword cemetery," Nolan explained.
"Ah, wonderful! Thank you for coming," Dr. Livingstone said, her face lighting up with relief.
As they prepared to tackle the task at hand, Nolan couldn't help but think about the journey ahead and the challenges they would face together.
(End of Chapter)
❇❇❇
Support me on Patreon - Read Up to 20+ Advanced Chapters There!
patreon.com/RedX43
❇❇❇