Chapter 79: The Legend of the Savior #2

Chapter 79: The Legend of the Savior #2

“I don’t have one?”

“What… No, you don’t have one?”

Disappointment filled the elder’s eyes.

I really shouldn’t be doing this, but I decided to play a little prank. The atmosphere was too serious.

I immediately retracted my statement.

“Actually, it was a lie. I do have one. Shall I show you?”

“Why would you tell such a lie! Is it that fun to mock this old man! Cough, cough-“

The elder jumped up, coughing.

Sometimes people tell lies, you know. He’s really making a fuss about it.

When I showed him the tattoo of demon subjugation on my finger, the elder let out a deep sigh.

“It was true indeed… One who is not an orc but has received the blessing of orcs… This is the tattoo of demon subjugation, a symbol of freedom and liberation… This also must have a meaning, indeed…”

“Isn’t it cool? This tattoo is quite useful.”

“The only thing I can’t accept is that a bold girl like you is the Savior…”

The elder pouted slightly, looking displeased.

It seemed he was still a little upset about my earlier prank.

They say old people get easily offended, maybe that’s why.

“One last question.”

The elder took a breath and straightened his back.

“Carmilla, the female lord of the vampires, cannot be defeated by the power of light. No matter how strong the light, it is simply erased before Carmilla’s shadow. Only the power of darkness, of the same nature, can defeat Carmilla. Have you prepared a countermeasure for that?”

“There’s no need to prepare. The abilities I can use are like this.”

I extended my palm towards the corpse of a nearby insect.

Cold magic enveloped the corpse, and soon the dead insect began to move as if alive.

The insect flew in an S-shape, then an X-shape, and finally landed gently on the elder’s shoulder.

“So that’s how it is…”

The elder’s pupils trembled. The elder continued, impressed.

“So you were a necromancer too. The prophecies of our ancestors never fail. A girl who wields necromancy was our Savior… Indeed…”

The elder stood with his eyes closed for a while, lost in thought. After a moment, the elder went into the dark tent.

When he reappeared, he was holding a small silver chalice in his hand.

“The Silver Chalice. It is yours.”

“The Silver Chalice?”

“It is a treasure of our snow orcs, kept to bolster the Savior’s strength. We have protected it from Carmilla’s subordinates without being discovered… Now, you use it.”

Although I pretended not to know, I actually already knew.

「The Silver Chalice」.

Its alias is 「The Chalice of Blood Absorption」. The item’s effect is exactly as its name suggests.

This artifact grants the user’s attacks an additional effect: 「Blood Absorption」.

However, when first obtained, the absorption rate is only 0.1%.

This means that for every 100 damage dealt, 0.1 health is recovered. At first glance, it seems like a useless, low-tier artifact…

“There is something you must know.”

The elder said with a serious face.

“This Silver Chalice has a way to awaken its hidden power. However, be careful. If you covet more power than your vessel can hold, you will be ruined.”

“Oh, really.”

“Do not be greedy. Look within yourself and carefully gauge the limits of your vessel.”

The elder spoke vaguely, but in game terms, it’s like this:

-The Silver Chalice can be enhanced by consuming my health.

-With each enhancement, the amount of health consumed increases.

-Beyond a certain stage, the amount of health sacrificed will exceed my maximum health. In this case, attempting to enhance will result in death.

The concept of this artifact is ‘control of desire’.

It’s rare for someone to hesitate to enhance the chalice when the absorption rate increases by 3%, 6%, and so on with each enhancement.

It gets stronger in an understandable way. It becomes a more overpowered item with each enhancement.

However, the game doesn’t reveal how much health is consumed during enhancement.

It was common for people to think, ‘Maybe one more enhancement is okay…’ and then die with a ‘click’ as a consequence of misjudgment.

“Now, I entrust all hope to you. The future of our orcs rests on your shoulders, young girl. Please, show us the miracle of the Savior…”

The elder handed the Silver Chalice to me.

Perhaps because it contained the future of a race, the chalice felt much heavier than it looked.

***

A few days later.

The day before the duel.

Jonathan’s movements had drastically changed compared to before the special training began.

“Old man, this is boring now! Why have you gotten so slow? Or maybe I’ve gotten faster! Wahaha!”

He said he wasn’t good at fighting, but perhaps he had hidden talent he didn’t know about.

I chose this orc because he seemed reasonably smart, but he unexpectedly had quite a bit of potential.

Jonathan quickly grasped and utilized the nuances of Orc Combat Techniques.

“Hoo – huff… Don’t get overconfident. There have been countless warriors superior to you. All of them died fighting Carmilla. Indeed, overconfidence is-“

“The greatest enemy of a warrior. Old man, I’ve heard it so much these past few days that my ears are getting calloused.”

“You insolent brat.”

Jonathan grinned and extended his hand.

The elder, catching his breath, took Jonathan’s hand and stood up.

Watching Jonathan, I said,

“Jonathan, then I’ll spar with you now. You’re right. It seems sparring with the old elder isn’t very helpful anymore.”

“What? Es-Estel… That’s a bit… You’re strong. I’ll just get beaten up.”

“What’s the point of bothering a slow old man like you? Stop whining and get in position.”

“Ugh…”

As Jonathan made a sad face, the elder chuckled.

“Why are you laughing!”

Jonathan grumbled.

While the two orcs bickered and argued, I held the Silver Chalice and admired it with satisfaction.

「Silver Chalice + 27

-Unique Item

-Durability: 22/24

-Treasure of the Snow Orcs. The chalice, shining with pure silver, emits a faint scent of blood.

-This artifact has been enhanced to its limit.

-Additional Option: 「Blood Absorption」」

「-Blood Absorption: Recovers 27% of the damage dealt by all attacks.」

Finally, I completed it.

The fully enhanced Silver Chalice.

The process was by no means smooth. At +14 enhancement, I couldn’t enhance it without dying, even with the power summoned from the Holy Reliquary.

Yes. I died many times.

But I was resurrected. It’s a reckless strategy possible only because I have the trait of a Lich, 「Immortality」.

‘It was worth all the effort.’

Absorbing 27% of all damage. It’s truly an absurd option.

Perhaps, in the entire history of this world, no one has enhanced the Silver Chalice this much.

‘With the Silver Chalice added, no one will be able to match my recovery.’

I couldn’t help but smile faintly. It felt like owning a new apartment whose value was guaranteed to skyrocket.

“Why, why are you laughing alone? It’s scary.”

Jonathan shivered. He seemed to have misunderstood something.

“I’m excited about beating you up.”

“Eek! Elder, please stop her. Estel has gone mad.”

Jonathan cowered and hid behind the elder.

***

The day of the duel.

Jonathan awkwardly wore the clanking armor.

“Elder, is this really that effective? I don’t know…”

“It is the Orc Warrior’s Armor, a treasure passed down through generations of snow orcs along with the Silver Chalice. Consider it an honor, Jonathan.”

“Treasure or not, the appearance is too ugly-“

“Your problem is that you complain at every opportunity. Just wear it. You’ll confirm its effects with your own body in a few hours.”

I looked at Jonathan’s somewhat improved appearance with interest.

「Orc Warrior’s Armor」. It’s a useful artifact that greatly enhances the wearer’s abilities.

However, it’s difficult for Jonathan to bring out its full potential without adventuring together and gaining experience, so it’s armor that’s too much for him right now.

‘It’ll get better with time.’

It’s an item exclusive to orcs, so I can’t wear it.

Well, I already received the Silver Chalice, and the armor I’m wearing is useful, so I don’t really need it.

‘And Jonathan is right. The design is too ugly.’

As the saying goes, it has been passed down through generations of snow orcs, so the armor’s design has adhered to a musty design from hundreds of years ago.

Jonathan looked old and shabby, as if he had jumped out of a history book.

“Well, shall we go?”

When I called out, Jonathan finally let go of the armor.

“Damn it! If only the screws on the shoulder part were a little tighter – Ah, damn it. Let’s just go, Estel.”

“It’s better to adapt to that armor quickly. You’ll have to wear it your whole life anyway.”

“My whole life? I don’t like that!”

I glanced back.

The elder was watching our backs, leaning on his cane.

“Grandpa, you don’t need to come out to see us off, go rest inside.”

“Understood.”

The elder’s gaze was meaningful.

It was no longer the look of an old man waiting to die without any expectations or hope.

“⋯How did you know? The master of death was our Savior.”

My steps, which were about to turn away, stopped. I narrowed my eyes and gazed at the elder.

“⋯Grandpa, what are you talking about?”

“It’s not that I’m just old and useless. I’ve lived longer than you think. Yes, I even experienced the era when the notorious Lich Frostwind was active.”

“What… Since you’ve already figured it out, there’s no point in denying it.”

I decided not to bother denying my identity unnecessarily.

Whether this elder figures out my identity or not, nothing will change.

If necessary, I could easily silence a weak old man, but there was no need to do so.

Still, perhaps the Orc Elder’s experience is showing. Reaching the truth without me telling him.

“This must be fate too. At least your rule will be better than Carmilla’s, so I have no complaints.”

“⋯Don’t misunderstand. I intend to overthrow Carmilla, but I have no intention of ruling afterward. Believe it or not. Do you think I’m taking Jonathan around and raising him for no reason? I don’t want to stay long in an orc village like this, where there are no proper facilities.”

“Do as you please. However, whether choosing the novice Jonathan was the right choice…”

“That’s true. I’m not entirely confident either. Well, if you help me a bit, it’ll be fine, right?”

The elder glanced at Jonathan’s retreating back and shook his head.

He seemed to have a premonition that a difficult path lay ahead.

He’ll have to support the inexperienced leader with his old body, so he’ll be quite busy from now on.

“Estel, what are you doing!”

Jonathan called out from a distance.

“Hurry up! There’s not much time until the duel! If we’re late, all the prestige will be gone!”

The elder nodded towards me with his chin. It meant it was time to go.

“I wish you luck.”

“Yeah. I’ll win and come back.”

I strode towards Jonathan.

“You don’t understand, Jonathan. The protagonist always appears a little late.”

The time has come.

Now is the time to reap the rewards. The rebellion of the slave village will begin today.