© 2024 Novelable
Chapter 918: Finding The Culprit
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After half an hour of an intense battle, the last Demonic Tree succumbed to Erika's sword and her Spirit's powers. She had already come out from the underground after disrupting everything enough and started helping us slay these gigantic monsters. Ultimately, there were a hundred of these monsters.
Because of their Spirit Orbs, we realized they were indeed Elder Treants, but that were contaminated by Demonic Energy to mutate into Demonic Trees as well.
Therefore, even though they might have been similar to Demons, they were more like Demonic Beasts. Well, nonetheless, it was a hundred of them down, that gave us a tremendous surplus of experience points, coupled with the five hundred more plant-type monsters between C Rank to A- Rank, that helped us grow at an exponential pace.
[You and your Party have slain [Elder Treant Demonic Tree (A+ Rank)] x100 and [Vicious Demonic Plant Monsters (C Rank ~ A- Rank)] x500!]
[You earned 236.000.000 EXP!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Your Level has increased from Level 30 to Level 37!]
[All your Stats have increased. You earned Bonus Stat Points and Skill Points.]
[Some of your Skills have Leveled Up.]
The grimoire's pages flickered as I noticed to be growing rather strong. Seven levels in a row were indeed a really good result for now. Though, I have no idea if that's still enough for any new Skill yet, I still need to Level Up a bit more to gain anything.
"Is everyone alright?" I asked my group. My vampire familiars were all mostly in top condition, but another half of my Familiars perished. Well, not like that mattered in the long run.
"I'm doing alright, yeah! I think we can continue right away!" Erika said, she seemed eager to fight some more.
"I am actually a bit exhausted… I've had to conjure a lot of magic." Elizabeth sighed, sitting down over a large Fenrir that was coming along with us.
"I'm a bit hungry, big bro!" Anna said.
"Me too." Allan nodded.
"Alright, I suppose it can't be helped. Let's take a break." I looked into the distance as I said that. The hundred elder treant that we slain opened the way to the deepest area of the gardens.
A gigantic, densely packed forest made of oversized flowers and grasses, it was not bigger than the village itself, and its entire surrounding area was now burned to the ground. I could still sense it, the presence of the monster that was coming everything in the shadows, imbued with demonic energies. It was waiting for us. But we can't fight it without being at one hundred percent our strength.
"Then let's eat and take a rest. The next fight should be our last in here." I smiled.
I unpacked a lot of things from my Inventory, and started cooking a huge feast for everyone, me included. I could go on for days, but I had to admit that I was getting hungry. I decided to cook a barbeque using the famous Giant Wild Boar meat of the village.
I also added dragon meat, which there were enough for a year or more from all the dragons we hunted in the Dungeon back inside of Stronghold City. And lastly, I prepared some salad to maintain a balance, too much meat can make your stomach feel too heavy after all.
"Ahh, nothing like eating barbecue in the middle of battle!" Erika was really happy. "Wild Boar meat will always be the very best~ So tashtyyy~~! Nom, nom!"
"Yes, it's delicious." Elizabeth nodded. "You've added a lot of new spices into this, huh? I can feel a hint of both sweetness and spiciness in this meat."
"I've been mixing different spices around to give meat more flavors. I suppose that's a small hobby." I shrugged. "Allan, Anna, make sure to eat all of your vegetables too. Don't you dare skip them."
"Okay big bro!" Allan nodded. My brother was obediently eating the vegetables even when he looked like he wasn't enjoying them.
"Geehh…" Anna wasn't eating them. However, once I gave her a stare, she forced herself to gulp down the carrots.
"Blood is always better, but this dragon meat… I can't get enough of this." Eleanora licked her red lips as she enjoyed her third dragon steak already. "Hmm, this wine is good too. A good feast before the last battle." She looked into the distance.
"I am beginning to think it could quite possibly be some sort of Archdemon now." I told my party.
"Wait, an Archdemon?! Here?" Erika gasped, almost choking on her own meal.
"You did say there was the influence of demons but… Not a cult?" Elizabeth asked.
"Maybe that too. It is confusing. It feels like if it was a cult, they would have already showed up. But this entire thing is a bit odd, as if only an archdemon has been moving the strings, influencing the monsters and controlling them. I suspect the monster controlling this entire area is some sort of Archdemon Vessel in the making.
This particular Archdemon has been rising this army in secret, right below our noses. They want to completely destroy the village with it." I said. "Well, it's not happening anymore."
"It's truly a relief we managed to get in here before that ever happened…" Elizabeth sighed in relief. "Though, to just imagine the amount of destruction all these monsters we've hunted could have brought to the village… It fills me with dread."
"Those Elder Treants alone could have trampled through everything without any problem!" Erika said. "It's nice to have such an insightful person as Blake with us, we wouldn't have been able to realize such a threat was growing so close to home…"
"Don't give me too much credit, you've helped more than you imagine." I smiled. "Well now, we're done eating, right? Let's depart. I won't be able to shake off this feeling of uneasiness if we don't get rid of that thing."
After packing things back inside my inventory, we set off into the skies through Ruby's back, flying above the burned Elder Treants and arriving inside the Heart of the Elios Garden.
And right there, we saw her.
"How… How did you even find out I was here?!"
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