Chapter 187 — Run, Guardians!

1

29th floor of the Garden.

They needed to raise their power output for the next twelve hours.

Even without him, as long as Nia was here, this side of the force should be fine. If not, he could always pull Anais or Pearson to help.

First, there was something he had to check.

“I have one question.”

Several eyes turned toward him at his question.

Manus got straight to the point.

“Was there any trouble dealing with the Patroller without me?”

“No, we only ran into an unexpected issue, but everything else was fine.”

“Then there shouldn’t be a problem if I act on my own.”

“Uh… Are you planning to go alone?”

Pearson asked.

Manus nodded and spoke up.

“I want you to take my place, Pearson. There’s something I need to retrieve.”

“No problem, leave it all to me!”

“You’re not going somewhere dangerous… are you?”

Nia asked with concern.

Anywhere in the tower could be dangerous, but there were especially perilous areas, no doubt. Manus gave a faint smile, as if to say not to worry.

They needed to learn to solve problems without him. Now that they had just taken their first steps, a little nudge should be enough.

Manus quietly began to descend the stairs.

The others followed him down.

“Alright, let’s meet here again in eleven hours.”

“Got it.”

“If anything happens, contact us, okay?”

Kael said with a stern expression.

Manus chuckled lightly and nodded.

The communication orb worked perfectly fine, so checking in every two or three hours should be enough.

“Everyone, make sure to keep an eye on your mana. See you later.”

“Understood. Alright, let’s get started, everyone!”

And so the eleven-hour race began.

Manus quietly walked off alone.

It was time to hunt.

2

Andrea’s Garden.

She had installed various devices to tend to the garden’s plants.

One of these devices allowed her to imbue her power into the beautiful plants to monitor every location.

Cultivating her precious plants and knowing where they were was only natural for the garden’s keeper.

“So you’re really going through with it.”

She sighed.

The scattered memories from the plants flowed back to Andrea, tormenting her.

Memories of being ripped apart, burned, pierced by ice, trampled by an overwhelming force.

Gritting her teeth, she was furious.

Truly ruthless, weren’t they?

Destroying her garden was simply intolerable.

This place was both a garden and a sanctuary.

A space that absolutely must not be trampled upon.

“Hah… I really didn’t want to use this method, but it looks like there’s no choice.”

Closing her eyes, she called upon her mana.

Far away, she conveyed her will to the Patroller guarding the area.

Go and hunt down those who are turning the garden into a wasteland.

Kill anyone daring to ruin the master’s sanctuary.

All the plants in the garden will become your eyes, so start with the one who’s all alone.

The Patroller, having received her will, began to move.

The first target would be the arrogant mage standing alone—

Manus.

The very person who had killed her new gardener and caused her to suffer yet another loss.

3

The air grew heavy.

Manus, who had been in the midst of his hunt, sensed something strange.

The plants around him all seemed to be watching him.

It felt like the entire garden had turned into a massive surveillance system.

Looking around, he noticed that all the flowers blooming here and there were facing him.

Andrea.

The garden’s master had the power to control the garden at will.

In fact, this was a dungeon where a variety of gimmicks were added from the 50th floor onward.

“Has it already begun?”

[Growl…]

Albion, too, seemed to sense that something was wrong, baring its fangs.

He couldn’t immediately discern what new gimmick had been introduced.

However, it was clear that the difficulty would increase for the remaining time.

Manus stroked his chin.

“This… might actually be a good thing.”

Increased difficulty = Stronger enemies swarming in = A bounty of experience points and mana stones.

Almost as if to prove his hunch correct, he heard the cries of demons echoing from all directions.

Manus reached out and stroked Albion’s head.

Their bond had grown to the point where, without even saying a word, they could convey their thoughts to each other.

Reading Manus’ intent through his touch, Albion nodded.

Demons began appearing from the alleys.

“It’s so considerate of my prey to reveal themselves so openly.”

Andrea should have known better.

Time may flow, but it was up to oneself to decide the density of that time.

She should have acted in the exact opposite manner.

Instead of ordering her precious plants to chase after him, she should have commanded them to run away.

The next eleven hours would be filled to the brim.

A blue light flickered between Manus’ hands.

“Assist me.”

[Growl!]

Albion nodded as if to say ‘leave it to me.’

Instead of casting spells, Manus assumed a boxing stance and launched himself off the ground.

Dirt and grass flew in the air as his form shot forward.

[Screech!]

[Screech, screech!]

[Keeeeeek!]

The demons’ shrill cries grated on Manus’ ears.

They seemed to be buzzing, pouring hostility toward him.

To Manus, they just looked like a bunch of confused, disorganized fools.

He threw a punch.

Boom!

The destructive power packed in the light jab was tremendous.

Professor Jennifer would have certainly applauded if she had seen this.

[Screeeeaaak!]

Albion flapped its wings, releasing mana.

With an overwhelming buff pouring in, Manus’ movements grew even more agile.

He burned the incoming tendrils with a burst of fire element.

Though he hadn’t formed a pact with spirits like Melanie, he had mastered a similar method of wielding elemental power.

After all, he had been continuously observing her training.

He had watched her for over a month—how could a Caesar fail to grasp the principle?

[Screeeeech!]

Watching the plants burst apart in an instant gave him a peculiar sense of satisfaction.

The study of “Matu” was truly a well-crafted discipline.

It not only perfectly compensated for the weaknesses of a mage, but also provided overwhelming efficiency.

Matu was specialized in maximizing gains with minimal mana.

Thanks to [High Restio], Manus’ mana constantly regenerated, further enhancing his efficiency.

“I don’t understand why you would do something so foolish. Unless…”

The approaching demons were nowhere near the level to pose a threat to Manus.

Occupying a narrow area, all he had to do was throw punches and kicks, and mana stones rained down.

Albion also used mana to gather a pile of mana stones whenever it found an opening.

Occasionally, some artifacts dropped, showing promising qualities.

After clearing a wave, Manus activated the communication orb.

“It’s me. Can you hear me?”

“Yes! I hear you! This is Kael!”

“What’s the situation on your end?”

“Suddenly a swarm of demons came at us. We’ve managed to set up a position and are dealing with them.”

“Try to gather as many mana stones as possible. How is Senior Nia’s group holding up?”

Static buzzed through the communication orb before Nia’s voice came through.

“We’re fine here too. Glad we packed enough potions.”

“Be careful. Stronger foes might start showing up.”

“Understood. What about you?”

“No major issues here either.”

Nia’s voice was filled with concern.

“Get whatever it is you need and rejoin us quickly. If you get isolated in this situation, you might end up not getting anything at all.”

“Understood.”

Manus ended the communication and looked ahead.

A heap of artifacts lay scattered around.

There were far too many to take all of them, to the point where his subspace pocket was almost overflowing.

“Now, let’s see…”

Manus quickly scanned the artifacts with his eyes.

Among the artifacts obtainable here, there was one that appeared useless but could later be used as a crafting material.

So many players had wasted time coming back here after missing it, lamenting their loss.

After about a minute of searching, he spotted it.

A blackened rod.

Manus picked it up and read the description.

The semi-transparent window displayed the following:

[Ritual Staff]

[A staff with no special effects. But maybe it could be useful somewhere?]

“Found it.”

He tossed it into his subspace pocket and turned around.

There might be an artifact to enhance the others’ abilities.

He randomly selected a few good-looking ones and began walking away.

The mana stones were evenly spread between S and M grades.

Farming was always enjoyable.

Now it was time to find another spot and block another wave.

“…Hm?”

Thud-

At that moment, an unfamiliar sound reached him from far away.

It was massive.

And it contained powerful mana.

Could it be…

“A Patroller?”

Originally, Patrollers were guardians—their job was to stand watch, not to hunt.

Wasn’t the hunter role already assigned to another character?

‘Something’s wrong here.’

Had things gone awry?

Instinctively, Manus began to move toward the source of the sound.

Simultaneously, he activated the communication orb.

“Where are all of you right now?”

“This is Kael, we’ve made it down to the 25th floor.”

“This is Nia, we’re on the 22nd.”

Manus was currently on the 27th floor.

He was closest to the stairs leading to the 30th floor, where the Patroller had been.

He frowned and explained the situation.

“A demon comparable to a Patroller is roaming around on the 27th floor right now. Be careful.”

“Should we join you? We can come up.”

“I don’t plan on engaging directly. Just focus on collecting the mana stones for now.”

“Alright, if anything happens, contact us immediately!”

Manus reassured them before ending the communication.

Contrary to what he had told his companions, he headed straight for where the overwhelming mana was concentrated.

Was this a reckless decision?

No, he didn’t think so.

This was a test for himself.

‘How far can I go on my own right now?’

He had learned a lot through the territorial war.

He was still far from reaching his goal.

There was no concept of levels, which typically represented power.

He had to endure this world with just the skill system alone.

How far had he come now?

He could use the 5th-Class Cadenza and cast 6th-Class spells on his own.

He had mastered Matu, and armed himself with various skills.

Strength wasn’t determined by abstract concepts alone.

[Growllll…]

“Found you.”

Thud-

A massive plant.

It was a flower.

Its petals were spread wide open, absorbing every nutrient like a gigantic, grotesquely beautiful rafflesia.

Where the stamen should have been, a blood-red mask lay in its place.

[Grooowl…]

Albion let out a low growl.

Manus surrounded himself with mana.

His mana, which had now grown considerably, caused the surroundings to tremble.

He could hear the whispers of spirits.

Though they were faint, distant murmurs, they were undoubtedly filled with malice.

Indeed, this was a place hostile to the living.

But it didn’t matter.

‘Kneel before Caesar.’

The malicious spirits quieted down.

Alright, now it seemed manageable.

A tendril whipped through the air, aiming at Manus’ head.

“You sure are impolite.”

Attacking while he was thinking?

The huge tendril was caught mid-air.

The tendril shook violently, struggling in his grasp.

A smile crept across Manus’ face.

This was the mindset he had learned this time.

It was the mindset of the guardian of the northern mountains, [Godric].

[Godric’s Mindset]

[Oh great protectors, stand firm against the great tide that crashes upon you.]

[When enemies come flooding in, you are to become the unyielding fortress wall.]

[Endure and endure. That is our role in protecting the northern part of the Empire and the path we must walk!]

[Godric, rise up with your shield! Stand tall against the Empire’s enemies with your body and your legs!]

[Skill Block Chance +30%]

[Counter Skill Activation Chance +30%]

[Health, Mana Recovery Speed +50%]

[Health +100%, Mana +30%]

[Physical abilities, including strength, are drastically enhanced.]

The power of Godric, a family known as the House of Divine Strength, surged within him.

–TL Notes–
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/MattReading

Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/BWaP3AHHpt