Chapter 258 - The Hunt Begins (2/2)
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[HP]: 4900/4900
[MP]: 1200/1200
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Stats:
Vitality - 245 (x10)
Strength - 155 (x10)
Defense - 345 (x10)
Agility - 210 (x10)
Intelligence - 120 (x10)
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Rummaging through Aurus's memories regarding conversion factors for existence levels, it took Argentum quite a while to come to a conclusion after calculating the stats Blob currently had. He was able to calculate that the defensive ability Blob currently had was equivalent to that of an Animate at around Rank 3 or 4, though he was not sure whether that would truly apply in combat.
As for Blob's other abilities, it was equivalent to that of a Rank 2 or 3 Animate…if that said Animate practiced the highest quality Tempering and Ascension skills possible. To Argentum, low-level Tempering and Ascension skills were just better than nothing. Of course, if Blob wanted to, he could fight against Rank 5 or even Rank 6 Animates without a problem, given that the skills they practiced were of a low quality.
Closing the status screen in front of his vision not long after, Argentum could not help but look at Blob from another perspective. Not only that, but finally seeing how much strength a single Power Baptism would give him, he was also tempted to go ahead and attempt a Power Baptism right now. Fortunately, his rational side still won, making him remember the promise he made for himself that he was going to attempt it after he was finished ransacking Verdant Breeze Town.
Scratching his head in slight awkwardness, Argentum went ahead and asked Blob, ”Could you take a step forward at your full power?”
”Hm?” Blob tilted his head in slight confusion, wondering why Argentum would ask him to do such a mundane thing. Nevertheless, he nodded his head in response to Argentum's request, taking a step forward as he channeled all of the power inside his body…
Only to propel multiple meters forward.
Whoosh!
With just one casual step, Blob was able to move over a hundred meters forward, eliciting Argentum to radiate an aura of complete shock as he realized that he had underestimated the benefits brought by a Power Baptism. On the other hand, Blob was shocked as well, noticing that the area surrounding him was now slightly different from what he was seeing before. Turning around to check where Argentum was, he was appalled to find out that Argentum was incredibly far away from him.
Just as Blob was about to head back to where Argentum was, Argentum went ahead and utilized the strongest movement speed boosting spell he had in his arsenal, taking a few seconds or so for him to arrive in front of Blob as he radiated an aura of immense excitement.
”Blob, I have a request for you,” Argentum said in a cheerful tone, having a feeling that Blob would definitely be able to do it.
”What kind of request is it?” Blob asked, getting the feeling that the request Argentum was about to ask him would be something that he could do with his current strength.
”Utilizing the route I've given you a few days ago, could you head to Verdant Breeze Town before the sun sets?” Argentum asked, looking at the position of the sun a few seconds later. Noticing that the sun had already passed the peak, Argentum estimated that there were around 4 hours or so before the sun started to set.
”On second thought, head to Verdant Breeze Town before a new day starts,” Argentum changed his mind a few seconds later, thinking that it was somewhat impossible for him to ask Blob, who was just starting to acclimate himself to his newly improved stats. Surprisingly, rather than feeling pressured, Blob radiated an aura of immense excitement as he replied, ”I'll head to Verdant Breeze Town as fast as possible! I wanna see how fast I can go!”
In response, Argentum let out an awkward laugh as he hastily transformed into a speck of red sand, landing on Blob's right shoulder soon after. After making sure that Argentum was truly on his shoulder, Blob then warmed himself up by lightly stretching his body before channeling all of the strength he could muster from his body towards his legs. Soon after, Blob and Argentum were now far away from their original position, dashing towards Verdant Breeze Town at a speed unbelievable for normal Animates.
…
And so, a few hours have passed since Argentum requested Blob to arrive at Verdant Breeze Town before the sun set. Of course, Argentum told Blob that it would be fine if they had arrived at night, but Blob was adamant that he would be able to arrive before the sun set.
And surprisingly, they did.
”Haah…haah…” After undergoing a Power Baptism, the amount of stamina he had was increased tenfold, allowing him to run faster for far longer, traversing long distances in a matter of minutes. As for the number of breaks he took during this journey, it was only brought down to only a couple of breaks, with the intent of the break either being truly recuperating or fighting against beasts to increase his strength by a bit.
Nevertheless, seeing the tall stone walls that covered the surrounding in front of them, with a large gate smack dab in the middle of the stone walls, Blob could not help but radiate an aura of happiness as he said in a panting manner, ”We've…arrived…Argentum…phew…”
”You actually did it…” Argentum, who was still a speck of red sand, could not believe that Blob actually arrived in front of the stone walls that surrounded the town before the sun had set. In fact, Argentum looked at the position of the sun as of now and realized that there was still about half an hour before the sun would set!
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, Argentum went ahead and reverted to his previous form before looking at the top of the stone walls that surrounded the town. Referencing the memories Aurus had regarding the town, he knew that there were guards who would be guarding the stone walls at night. Since it was not night yet, there were no guards on the top of the walls, allowing Argentum and Blob to take a breather wherein they knew they were safe, especially Blob.
After a couple of minutes, Argentum silently urged Blob to head towards some nearby trees, to which Blob agreed and followed Argentum. After arriving there, Blob went ahead and asked Argentum, ”What are we doing here?”
”Once the sun sets, guards will start patrolling the walls of the town we're about to enter, so it's better for us to hide from their line of sight right now,” Argentum responded. He then added, ”Do you want to be taken by them?”
”Is it bad if I get taken away by them?” Blob asked, oblivious to the relationship between Animates and Pseudo-Animates. In response, Argentum succinctly said, ”Incredibly bad. That's all I'll say. Anyways, before we enter the town, make sure to morph into an incredibly small thing so we won't get caught by the Animates.”
”I understand,” Blob said as he nodded in understanding. Just as he looked at the stone walls surrounding the town, a thought surfaced in his mind. With this in mind, he turned his sense of vision to look at Argentum and ask, ”Now that I think about it, you haven't told me what we're going to do here. You just told me that we need to arrive here. So…what are we going to do here?”
”We're going to grab something inside this town,” Argentum responded in a slightly sinister tone as he softly cackled. ”A thing that would help me improve in strength very fast.”
Recalling the item that Aurus obtained from this town in a quest, Argentum looked at the town walls with an avaricious gaze. He then told Blob the name of the item he wanted from the town.
”The Tome of the Four Elements.”
”Huh?”
”That's the item I'm aiming for in this town.”