For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.
Chapter 122: Settlement

Shivering, Carla and Elisha snuggled into my arms, and I enjoyed their touch while picking up the alarm I had set aside.

Ding!

The Seven Mysteries of the Academy Conquered

You encountered what you thought were just rumors—the Seven Mysteries—and defeated them all!

Well… they weren't as grand as the rumors, and maybe they weren't the real thing, but still!

You've uncovered and resolved the secrets of the academy!

For that, a portion of the essence of these ghost stories will seep into you!

-Title: Ghost Buster acquired.

Just as I expected.

It was a subtle title, Ghost Buster, nice to have but not essential for fighting.

The effects were simple.

Title: Ghost Buster

You've perfectly crushed seven ghost stories in less than a night. The undead, unable to die, should now fear you.

-All actions against undead get a 5% positive additional effect.

-Low probability to reflect mental attacks from undead-type monsters.

At first glance, it seemed like a decent title despite being limited to a specific race…

But the limitation to the undead was the problem.

Undead monsters were powerful, but they had many weaknesses.

They were weak to light attribute magic and flame attribute, and they practically melted in holy power.

Even a melee fighter could get more than a 5% bonus just by sprinkling a cup of holy water on their weapon.

And even more with a priest’s blessing.

The useful part might be the second option—reflecting mental attacks.

Undead monsters, regardless of their level, had intimidating traits that instilled fear in their enemies.

Usually, it was just enough to shrink the body a bit or lower morale.

Undead magicians actively use this to cast various curses and mental magic.

But what if it wasn’t just resisting but actually reflecting it?

It could momentarily stagger a high-level undead, making it a morale-boosting title.

But the second option really activates as rarely as finding a bean in a drought, so don’t get your hopes up.

It would be lucky if it triggers and normal if it doesn’t.

So, the Ghost Buster title was handy to have, but not a big deal if you didn’t have it.

Of course, this was just in the game.

For me, who needed to get stronger, it was worth spending a few hours to acquire it.

Grinning from ear to ear, I was checking dungeons and events related to the undead when suddenly…

Ding!

Another alarm unexpectedly rang.

“Huh?”

What else could come up now?

Exposing the Boiling Silence Church

“Ah.”

The system window I checked with curiosity contained the settlement details I had momentarily forgotten.

It was finally showing up.

I thought since there was no notification about it so far, events not in H&A wouldn’t give rewards.

But seeing the long list of notifications, a pleased smile naturally appeared on my face.

Maybe I was too obvious in showing my excitement

Just a moment ago, Carla and Elisha, shivering from a rather eerie ending, opened their mouths with suspicious eyes.

“…Master, you were thinking about something else just now, weren’t you? What’s making you so happy?”

“Right. You’re toying with both Carla and me while having the luxury to think about something else?”

“Oh my. Toying, you say? That’s harsh. I just had a pleasant thought for a moment.”

I removed my hands from their chests, which they had been fidgeting with, and gently stroked their heads.

Carla’s platinum hair wrapped softly around my hand like silk.

And Elisha’s lush blue hair gently pushed back against my palm.

While soothing their not-so-serious complaints, I quickly read the rest of the notifications filling my view.

Exposing the Boiling Silence Church!

Oh my! You've exposed the dangers of the well-hidden Boiling Silence to the world! Even using a method involving the sacred relics of the Church of Righteous Radiance—a method anyone could understand! Such a feat should not have been possible! The first time was a coincidence. The second is inevitability. The third is destiny.

But what should we call you, who twisted fate three times?

The high ranks of various countries will now be even more wary of the cultists. Additionally, the Boiling Silence Church, which played a key role behind the scenes, will falter, causing disruptions in the plans of other Evil God churches.

It's a remarkable achievement to have kept the entire cult in check alone. Sadly, the only ones who truly recognize this are the cultists who suffered at your hands.

Still, you're going to save the world, aren't you?

-All stats have significantly increased.

-All growth potential traits' proficiency has significantly increased.

-Your favorability with all divine churches has increased.

-Your favorability with the Church of Righteous Radiance has increased further.

-All Evil God churches regard you as an enemy.

-The Boiling Silence designates you as a public enemy.

-Trait: Cultist Hatred (D) grows by one more level.

“???”

The content made me tilt my head without realizing it.

First of all, the rewards themselves were astonishingly good.

The growth in stats and traits was always right.

I expected my relations with divine churches to improve, and the opposite with the Evil God churches.

The Cultist Hatred trait was hard to raise, but the more it would grow, the better it would become.

This level of reward was almost comparable to capturing an apostle of an Evil God.

Yet, there was something that bothered me, preventing me from being simply happy…

Was the system window always like this?

Initially, although there were some annoying lines, it seemed more business-like.

Like a game interface.

But the tone of the notifications sent this time lacked that inorganic rigidity.

It even felt somewhat friendly.

“…….”

I couldn’t guess any part of it at all.

Perhaps there was someone behind that system window.

The delay in this settlement might be because someone was flustered by the unexpectedly large-scale spy hunt that spread across the continent.

Or maybe it took time to determine the rewards for my achievements.

Of course, it could all just be my imagination.

But if someone was behind that status window…

He must be the one who planted H&A on Earth and dropped me into this world in my current form.

If he brought me from Earth, maybe he could send me back.

‘Return’.

A word I longed for once, now buried in a corner of my heart.

The sudden possibility made my heart flutter.

A world I’d experienced numerous times in games, a world overflowing with gold in the inventory, a world where magic was real.

But it was a world that might face destruction within a few years.

If possible, I wanted to return to Earth, even if it meant giving up everything I had.

…That was what I thought until a few months ago.

Not anymore.

Carla’s and Elisha’s heads were pressing against my arms.

Their heads, small and usually light, feel incredibly heavy at this moment.

What would happen to these two if I left midway? What about Iris? What about Faye?

Squeeze.

“Master?”

“Yandel?”

Unknowingly, I put strength into my arms, and they responded with curious voices. Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ NøᴠᴇlFire.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

I forced a smile and shook my head.

“It’s nothing. Just… today, you both look especially pretty. Yeah.”

Ah, forget it!

It was pointless to worry about something that wasn’t even certain.

I’ll just do my best in the situation given to me.

As always. And so it would be.

I repeated the words I’d always kept in mind and muttered to myself.

‘Status Window.’

Name: Yandel

Title: Clumsy Treasure Hunter

Basic Abilities

Strength: 13 -> 14

Endurance: 13 -> 14

Agility: 13 -> 14

Skill: 15 -> 16

Magic Power: 20 -> 21

Traits

Endless Mana (A)

Elemental Affinity (B)

Exceptional Memory (B)

Ordinary Weapon Skills (D) -> (D+)

Lintblum Mana Core (C) -> (C+)

Junior Mage (C)

Sun God's Blessing (B)

Cultist Hatred (D) -> (C)

Weak Constitution (C)

Elemental Combination (A)

I didn’t expect the mana core grade to rise already.

It was probably because of the mana shower I received after clearing the hidden piece in the library.

And thanks to the various mid-low-priced elixirs I won at the auction, I must have accumulated quite a stack.

Then, with this reward, my stats increased significantly, leading to their growth.

Carla, purring and rubbing her face against me in my embrace, asked.

“Can I start learning about the Lintblum core’s resonance trait soon?”

So far, I’ve been simply unleashing spells with my vast mana.

Now it’s time to use it to boost my power.

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