Chapter 208: Magical Beast, Rakyel (1)

TL: Haku

Editor: Hungry Panda

Ian and Cervian hit it off quite well.

The biggest reason for that was because the characteristics of the two were similar.

They both endlessly studied and a.n.a.lyzed Familiars.

With just this one topic, the two people's conversation could continue without end.

Although it was mainly a structure where Cervian solved Ian's curiosities, that is.

"So, Cervian. You're saying that there's something that exists in a similar form as 'Potential' with magical beasts as well, right?"

"What if you were to pick out a couple of points that were most prominently different?"

Cervian, who stroked his beard, slowly opened his mouth.

Ian slightly knitted his brows as he asked.

"What do you mean when you say that they lack intellect? So then… Are you saying that they may not be able to really understand my command?"

Cervian immediately shook his head as he replied.

Simply put, he meant that their AI dropped compared to common Familiars.

This could approach other Summoners as a considerably critical weakness, but to Ian, that was not the case.

'It's possible that they fit my fighting style better instead.'

Ian's style was to give commands to all of his Familiars one by one while controlling precisely.

To Ian, a battle was a process where he needed to activate a giant algorithm that was well-knit without any empty s.p.a.ces and arrive at the result he wanted.

To Ian, who needed to have all of his Familiars movements under his control in order to be satisfied, the lack of AI for a Familiar wasn't that big of a shortcoming.

'Magical beasts… Huh. The more I learn about them, the more I like them.'

The magical beasts that appeared in Zone 100-110 had another level of power that was different from the magical beasts that appeared in Zone 110-120.

As that was the case, it was a situation where they couldn't help but continue on with even harder hunts, but whenever they took a break, Ian was always sharing a conversation with Cervian.

'For the duration that I can be with Cervian, I should absorb all of this old man's knowledge as mine.'

Of course, Ian also had the Ill.u.s.trated Book of Magical Beasts that Cervian wrote himself, but it felt different yet again hearing the explanation of the writer or author than for him to read the recordings that were made into a book.

Ian's party, who proceeded through the map little by little like that, was finally able to arrive at Zone 107, where Cervian's laboratory apparently was.

"Cervian, which direction is your laboratory in? Zone 107 seriously looks like a maze."

Different from Zone 108, which was open in all directions, Zone 107 had a structure like a narrow and complicated cave.

While looking at Ian, who asked for directions with an embarra.s.sed expression, Cervian slowly stepped forward.

"Why's that?"

Cervian pa.s.sed through the pa.s.sageways adeptly as he began to guide Ian's party to the laboratory.

Ian followed behind Cervian as he shook his head.

'Ha… It will be easier memorizing the whole Ill.u.s.trated Book of Magical Beasts or whatever than memorizing this path. If I was asked to find my way back out just on my own without Cervian, will I be able to?'

Ian still tried to memorize the path as much as possible, and while he did so, Cervian was able to arrive at his laboratory.

Although, of course, rather than a laboratory, it had a visual that was closer to 'ruins', that is.

Ian laughed as he asked back.

"Why do you say it in past tense?"

At that, Cervian replied with a sullen expression.

As Cervian's sullen expression was quite cute, Ian snickered.

"Anyhow, it is quite amazing."

"Starting from the entrance of Zone 107, it seems like we've been on the move for 30 minutes until we got here, but we haven't discovered even one magical beast."

"How exactly is that possible?"

Cervian explained with a proud expression.

Ian nodded his head as he thought to himself.

'In various ways, I'm proceeding through the quest easily thanks to Cervian. It's to the point that I'm nervous instead because everything is going too smoothly.'

While the two were having a chat, the party arrived at the deserted house that was disguised as the laboratory, and Ian walked inside of there with big strides.

"Hmm…?"

Cervian warned him again.

"Why's that?"

"Ahem… That thing called the Chaos Stone, is it a substance that magical beasts like?"

Cervian, who thought about it for a moment, responded shortly.

Ian, who immediately understood Cervian's words, began to carefully enter the laboratory.

And sure enough, before it had even been 3 minutes since he entered, Ian's party was able to meet a group of intermediate-rank magical beasts made up of about five or six of them.

Ian immediately began to busily let out commands.

"Move calmly! We just need to do as we've been doing up until now. Firstly, Bbakbbak, move forward!"

As he did so, Celia, who was next to him, instantly summoned Ddukdae and had him follow right behind Bbakbbak.

And with that movement as the trigger, Ian's Familiars and retainers began to move quickly and accurately.

While floating in the air, Cervian, who watched Ian do that, mumbled with a quiet voice.

As expected of the source of the contamination, the magical beasts that appeared in the laboratory were all magical beasts that had a high level of contamination.

It was because of that they were also opponents that were even more fussy to face as well.

"Ly, you're going to ambush magical beasts that other Familiars or retainers are fighting with me. Since they're easily distracted because of their madness, the effectiveness of stabbing them will be even better."

A moon was always up in the sky of the Devildom 365 days a year.

Thanks to that, Ly's pa.s.sive skill was s.h.i.+ning incredibly brightly ever since they entered the Devildom.

That was one of the inherent abilities of the Sovereign Fenrir, the Heir of the Moon.

The inherent ability the 'Heir of the Moon' was a high-quality pa.s.sive skill that made all movement speed increase by 30% and had them recover 3% of their maximum Vitality every second whenever they received moonlight.

However, the number of moons that were up in the sky of the Devildom was not just one, but three, and surprisingly, the effect of the Heir of the Moon was being applied with the overlap.

The top-ranking pa.s.sive skill that was being tripled could simply be considered a cheat.

Ly's movements had increased by 90% while he was in the Devildom, and his Vitality was recovering by a whopping 9% every second.

The description of a zombie a.s.sa.s.sin that didn't die truly fit him.

While in the Devildom at least, Ly was showing off a fighting power that wasn't the least bit inferior even when compared to Karceus.

With Ly, who was leaping around like crazy, at the head, Ian slowly began to clean up the laboratory starting from the entrance.

'Whew, even though it takes a bit of time, we need to proceed through safely. It looks like this place is swarming with strong monsters that can cause instant annihilation with just one mistake.'

If he just somehow successfully cleared this laboratory and completed all of the connected quests, he would be able to obtain a dual cla.s.s.

Once that was the case, it was definite that Ian's fighting power would be strengthened towards a level higher, so it would even be possible for him to enter into even deeper places in the Devildom then.

'Alright. Let's be cautious for a little longer and get through this place.'

Ian demonstrated his greatest concentration and began to hunt the magical beasts that swarmed the laboratory one by one, and he was eventually able to enter into the core part of the laboratory.

And as he arrived at the core, Cervian, who just watched Ian's battle for a while without a word, finally opened his mouth.

At Cervian's words, Ian's gaze suddenly turned, and discovering the blue light, Ian nodded his head.

"Yes, I can see it over there. Should I go over there?"

Cervian nodded his head.

Ian slowly approached that door.

"But that thing called Chaos Stone, is it an item that is no danger to my Familiars or myself?"

At Ian's question, Cervian nodded his head as he explained.

"I see."

"Understood, Cervian."

At Cervian's warning, Ian stopped in his tracks and swept up all of the magical beasts nearby first.

To prepare for the ones inside that were difficult to handle to pop out, he had cleaned up all of the small fries that were nearby.

"Alright, shall we go inside now?"

Ian, who had gently put his hand between the ajar door, slowly pulled the door open and threw it back.

As he did so, a blue light that was bright to the point that it blinded his eyes leaked out, and within the wide s.p.a.ce that was about as big as a small auditorium, a giant magical beast was coiled up.

With a size that was almost comparable to Karceus, it was a giant pterodactyl that was covered completely in black feathers.

Ian, who momentarily flinched at that sharp gaze and intense pressure, took a step back as he got into a battle stance, and Cervian, who was next to him, rounded his two eyes as he looked at the pterodactyl.

Ian, who heard Cervian's slightly out-of-the-blue words, wore a puzzled expression as he asked.

"When you say unbelievable, what is?"

Cervian slowly opened his mouth with a dazed expression.

"Rakyel…?"

Towards Ian, who still had on a perplexed expression, Cervian added to his explanation.

At the words high-ranking magical beast, Ian asked back with a little more nervous expression.

"If it's a high-ranking beast, it must be incredibly strong, right?"

However, the response that returned to Ian's question was one that was completely unexpected.

"Then?"

While the two conversed, the two eyes of the Rakyel, who was asleep in front of the Chaos Stone, slowly opened up.