Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Rumble…

The Flame Burrow that once stretched more than a thousand meters into the sky, crumbled from within. Tremors from the impact had generated a low-pitched buzzing sound that echoed throughout the area. A massive cloud of dust had been thrown into the air, temporarily blocking off the sunlight as pieces of debris were sent flying in every direction. And yet, this scene was just one of many other incidents of destruction occurring simultaneously throughout the Dark Destroyer Kingdom.

Beneath the rubble, the magic array cultivating the Abyssal Moss continued its progress, seemingly unfazed by the destruction going on around it.

Given sufficient time, the Abyssal Moss would successfully integrate the Acraepoids’ blood into its own system in such a way that it could survive the purification process by the energy of the world, thus allowing itself to thrive in this world.

Any foreign biological lifeform that exceeded a native world’s biological capacity would inevitably be purified by the world’s laws.

In the long run, the threat imposed on this world by this Abyssal Moss was far greater than the Black Isotta Stigmata Sorcerer!

However, at this point in time, the Abyssal Moss is in its weakest possible state, considering that it was brought over by the Sorcerers Will to this world which had an entirely alien habitat. Thus, the sorcerers still had to take extra care in nurturing it, to give it an extra layer of protection.

Grimm, Wicky and Claudia gathered around, forming a small team. With Grimm leading the way, they flew in the direction of the underground construction which Millie and Solumn were instructed to destroy.

“Tell me, why did you go out of your way to kill that insignificant little bastard just now. Don’t tell me it was just out of your own whims.”

Grimm did not turn around as he spoke. Even so, it was undeniable that his tone was dead serious.

Wicky, who was fully clad in a heavy suit of armor lifted his head and looked at Grimm.

He did not understand the truth of the matter in which Grimm was referring to at all, which was evident in the confused look in his eyes beneath the armored helmet.

“Do you believe that there exists a protagonist in this world?”

Claudia asked as she looked at Grimm with great interest. Her eyes were so keen they seemed to be luminous, which partly contributed to her appeal.

“You’re talking about the protagonist that is safeguarded against all odds by fate, the one from fantasy novels?”

Grimm asked, after laughing at Claudia’s sudden question.

The Myna, who was perched on Grimm’s shoulder mumbled, “As the great Steel Emblem Myna, I have to sensibly remind you, that not even the great Necromancer can resist what has already been predetermined by fate.”

Claudia’s red lips curved into a smile as she shook her head in amusement at the Myna’s remarks.

“I don’t know much about fate, but through my own observation over the years, everyone has, to an extent, what we call luck. If one were to accumulate enough luck, the successes he would enjoy in the future would be unimaginable. This luck can be embodied in others’ trust and expectations towards the individual, and is somewhat similar to unfulfilled potential.”

Luck?

Grimm had once heard something similar to this. However, there were no sorcery theories backing such claims therefore he did not believe in a single word Claudia had said.

How was it that someone’s potential could be possibly viewed and determined by external factors?

An uncountable number of coincidences made up the world to what it was today. Because of that, the endless world was so diverse. The fact that it contained so much undiscovered potential meant that the road up ahead for sorcerers would be never-ending.

“If we go by what you have just said, it would mean that that little Acraepoid has gathered a ton of luck then?”

Grimm asked sarcastically.

“That’s right!”

Claudia’s expression was surprisingly serious as she explained, “The amount of luck it had gathered is insurmountable. It is so much that I fear one day, it would become a future World Lord! And when it truly becomes the World Lord, God knows what’s going to happen…”

‘World Lord?’

The constitution of that guy was only a measly five points and Grimm could easily kill these bastards by crushing them with his own fingers. How preposterous it was to say that the little guy could become a World Lord, someone of equal standing to a Stigmata Sorcerer?

It seems that this “luck” thing was really unreliable.

Dissatisfied with Claudia’s explanation, the Myna crossed it wings and retorted, “If you’re really that good, then tell me, how much “luck” does Lord Ba have?”

“You have none.”

Claudia’s serious expression suddenly softened as she smiled cheekily at the Myna.

“Caw!? What did you say? How could you say that the great Lord Ba has no luck? You mean there is no potential in me, Lord Ba? So no one is placing any hopes on me to become the protagonist huh?”

The Myna continued, “Bah, excuses! This “luck” nonsense is just an excuse to fool my young master!”

Grimm could not help but chuckle at the Myna’s overreaction. He then casually turned towards Claudia and asked, “Well then, what about my and Vicky’s luck?”

Wicky, although remaining silent, glared at Claudia as if to warn her from saying anything bad.

“Well, you know, this “luck” thing is like the clouds in the sky. I can only recognize and describe those which are distinct and special, say for example… you, Grimm!”

Claudia took out a golden necklace from the Dimensional Gap on her voluptuous chest. Grimm and Vicky instantly felt an odd magical energy emanating from it, as if someone was using the Occult Code of Life and Death nearby.

In the distant sky, some Infernal Spirit Slave creatures looked in the direction of Grimm, Vicky and Claudia before flying away as if the group was invisible.

Upon seeing this, Grimm deduced that it must have some subconscious hypnotic effect.

“Most people’s luck, like ours to the creatures from just now, are largely ignored on the subconscious level. For you however, your luck has somehow grown exponentially after the Holy Tower qualification battle. It’s like a massive hurricane that’s growing ever larger in size, especially since your release from the Prison of the Seven Rings. Your growth in luck rivals that of a Stigmata Sorcerer. And yes, after you killed that youngling Acraepoid, your luck has grown a significant portion.”

Claudia said and then smiled mischievously at Grimm.

“I’ll let you in on a secret. Whoever remains by the side of a lucky person, would see their own luck grow higher too.”

‘Stigmata Sorcerer?!’

Claudia’s words were indeed shocking. Although Grimm was happy after hearing what Claudia had said, his rationality was doing its best to suppress such emotions from surfacing.

Was this the reason why Claudia stayed close to Grimm?

For the sake of such an abstract concept called luck, she abandoned the prospects of gaining a Rank-3 Honor Badge and chose to stay close to the Stigmata-Sorcerer-level of potential Grimm possessed?

This was an entirely groundless claim and Grimm was left speechless.

“Alright, the discussion on such topics will cease for now. We’ll go in to support Millie’s side, and at the same time, see if you guys can get the chance to be awarded an Honor Badge.”

Although Grimm had long lost the chance to obtain a lower-ranking Honor Badge, the Seven-Ring Contract had made it clear that he would be rewarded handsomely if Solumn, Millie, Wicky or Claudia managed to get an Honor Badge for themselves.

“Hmm? This is…”

Wicky’s eyes widened as he gasped in surprise.

“Wait, let’s go over there and take a look first!”

Wicky was referring to a six hundred-meter tall Flame Burrow that had yet been destroyed by the Demon-Hunter Sorcerers. It seemed that something interesting had caught Wicky’s eyes.

Wicky pulled out his hammer, leading Grimm and Claudia through the entrance of the Flame Burrow. As they entered into the central shaft, he flew towards a target he had sensed back when they were still outside.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sounds of explosion echoed from the upper levels of the Flame Burrow. Grimm could barely make out the silhouettes of seven or eight Dark Demon-Hunters that were fighting a fierce battle with more than a dozen Acraepoids.

Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! Zoom!

Four spinning ice cones shot through the chasm, as the leader of the team of Acraepoids dodged it with ease. The result being four large holes drilled through the thick walls of the Flame Burrow.

This Acraepoid leader moved with such speed that one could only see its blurred figure darting around the burrow. With a blazing Infernal Blade in one hand, a dark beam was fired from the blade’s edge.

“Ugh…”

The Level-2 sorcerer battling against this Acraepoid moaned in pain. Although his Flame-Elementized body managed to dodge the fatal attack, he was grazed by the Power of the Infernal Spirit, which, by itself caused significant damage to the sorcerer.

As the flames regathered, the Demon-Hunter Sorcerer’s originally pale face had turned an unnatural shade of red.

“Ha ha ha ha, this signal, make no mistake! This is the essential signal of an Earth Vein! Grimm, help me look for the Earth Vein essence from their bodies later. For each gram of Earth Vein essence you find, I’ll pay you one sorcerer essence!”

Wicky laughed heartily before his body gradually darkened into a shade of pitch-black.

“Gravitational Spell!”

The Acraepoid leader high up in the sky was suddenly struck with surprise. Its body suddenly felt multiple times heavier than before. Despite beating its wings much harder, it could only move at a snail’s pace.

‘Earth Vein essence?’

It must be some kind of rare material, something Wicky was looking for.

“Alright!”

Grimm took up Wicky’s offer. The eyes beneath the Mask of Truth lit up, and with the wave of the Sabbatic Goat Staff, Grimm yelled out, “Force of Attraction!”

With the combination of gravity and attractive forces at play, both of them shot up into the sky like artillery shells fired from a cannon.

The Acraepoid leader failed in his frustrating chase for victory. Angered by this, its gaze instinctively shifted towards Grimm and Wicky. With a loud “whoop”, the sabre in its hands burned ever stronger with Infernal Spirit Energy, extending over seven meters long. Then, it did the opposite of fighting Wicky’s gravitational pull, pummelling towards Grimm and Wicky at high speed.

Thud!

The sabre clashed with Wicky’s hammer. Wicky grunted under his breath and was forced to fall back slightly. The powers of this Acraepoid leader was obviously higher than what Wicky could deal with, especially on his own.

As an Elemental Sorcerer, Grimm did not even think about fighting close-quarters combat with his opponent. Instead, with a wave of his staff, two elemental bees, one fire and one ice, flew towards the enemy.

This Acraepoid leader seemed to have had experience fighting sorcerers. With one hand reaching over to its waist, the phantom of a dagger stabbed through the air, triggering the Ice Bee which turned into a large ice crystal before shattering into tiny fragments.

The Acraepoid then jumped with incomparable agility onto the walls of the Flame Burrow, before dodging the attack from Grimm’s Fire Bee. As it jumped away from the attack, it was hurtling towards Grimm with the blazing Infernal Blade in its grip.

“This bastard…”

Grimm was surprised that although it was a Level-2 Acraepoid, its combat skills far surpassed that of other Level-2 Acraepoids he had ever seen.

Grimm instinctively knew that he was no match for this Level-2 Acraepoid. Turning into millions of grains of yellow sand, he dodged the incoming attack and reappeared ten meters away.

“Grimm!”

Claudia was holding off an Infernal Blade attack with a cloud of pink mist.

Grimm then remembered the wounds that the Level-2 sorcerer had sustained. It seemed that this Level-2 Acraepoid had firmly grasped the experience of fighting against a Level-2 sorcerer.

It was undeniable that Grimm felt a lingering sense of fear, but he steadied his gaze before a dense pattern of black scales started to cover his body.

“Wild Instinct, level one, activate!”

“Roar!”

Three Demon-Hunter Sorcerers rushed down from the higher reaches of the Flame Burrow. Not including the wounded Level-2 sorcerer from before, another Level-2 sorcerer had joined the battle.

Six of these sorcerers then simultaneously started their attacks on this single Acraepoid.

More than half an hourglass had passed and six of these Demon-Hunter Sorcerers still failed to take down this Level-2 Acraepoid. The battle happening up above had ended, indicated by the arrival of six Level-1 Demon-Hunter Sorcerers.

“Curses!”

The Level-2 Acraepoid hurled obscenities in the language of the Infernal Spirit World. It looked at the Demon-Hunter Sorcerers with eyes burning with resentment for one final time before escaping into the sky.

“Huh huh huh…that guy, damn he was strong!”

Wicky said out loud while he gasped for air.

Grimm’s breath under the Mask of Truth was ragged and disordered. Glancing at the other Demon-Hunter Sorcerers that looked back at him with respect, he asked: “Could it be that this is a treasure vault?”