I Became a 6★ Gacha Character

Chapter 227: Rock vs Flying 2

TL/Editor: Raei

Schedule: 5/Week Mon-Fri

Illustrations: Posted in discord.

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In a certain cave on the 41st floor, a passageway leading down the mountain range was discovered.

Descending the stairs, a city of stone dwarves who call humans 'squishies' and harpies 'flappers' appeared.

Their eyes, nose, and mouth were merely shallow carvings on the stones at the top of their heads, but these beings could speak, smell, and look at us just fine.

Though they would have been quite frightening in a larger size, reminiscent of a creature from a horror movie, their small stature only made them seem cute.

"Squishies like shiny things, right? I crave the rocks that are found only outside the mountain range. Bring me some, and I'll give you this gem."

"I remember squishies who came to buy things from me were once kidnapped by the flappers. Bring me their red feathers, and I'll reward you."

"Hello, squishies! See, I want to dig a passage to another mountain range, but the adults are against it. So, can you bring me stalactites from another cave instead?"

The side quests we received were diverse: from hunting harpies that attacked visitors to gathering quests for rocks and stalactites, fitting for a race that lived on stones.

The guild's requests usually involved gathering herbs and flowers that bloomed on the high mountain cliffs, but the stone dwarves, due to their racial traits, sought various kinds of stones from different locations.

This unique aspect seemed to resonate well with the viewers.

The viewers, who were previously boiling over with frustration due to Han Se-ah's mere walking in her stream, now seemed calmer, as if their earlier irritation was a lie.

-They chew rocks like candy LOL

-Feels like the quest starts with a rock and ends with a rock?

-Blocked path to the other mountain range seems like a big hint. Try opening it up.

-A grand journey of piercing through the mountains from the 41st to the 50th floor?

-Han Se-ah, the queen of civil engineering.

"Why can't we dig a new passage? It feels like, aside from slaughtering harpies, there might be a huge boss monster underground, right?"

Although they were not as slender as elves, the emergence of these friendly and communicative non-human species sparked more conversation among the viewers.

The chat, usually filled with teasing Han Se-ah or meaningless chatter, now had more discussions trying to deduce the story.

A theory emerged among the viewers and the party: that a giant monster underground was threatening the stone dwarves, completing the quest would open a passage to another mountain range, leading to another underground city, and that the harpies must have a nest somewhere that would eventually be invaded.

"With the help of the stone dwarves, we might be able to find the nest of those harpies."

"A nest, that sounds plausible."

"Even birds with wings can't fly forever."

Similar to the party's thoughts, there was a discussion about the harpies' nest.

Just as the horned fox hides in its favorite pile of herbs, and orc warriors build their own tribes, it appeared that the tower's monsters also had a tendency to create their own havens.

Thus, even the harpies that fly around and hinder us, it seemed likely they had a nest somewhere on a mountaintop.

Didn't they even appear to domesticate one-horned mountain goats?

Forming flocks, establishing hierarchies, and even raising livestock it was hard to believe they would be nomadic without nests.

The viewers also speculated there would be a nest, and Grace and Katie shared similar thoughts.

Like how they received help from the black naga Manaashi, they believed they could advance to the 50th floor with the aid of the stone dwarves.

"Well then, we should first fulfill their requests to establish a friendly relationship."

"It's somewhat comfortable since it's similar to the guild's requests. Anyway, the number of requests has decreased a bit."

"Probably because the high mountain area starting from the 41st floor is not well-known, and there are fewer adventurers coming in, resulting in fewer requests at the guild."

Thus, Han Se-ah, having received a multitude of side quests in the underground city of the mountain range, smiles broadly as she climbs the stairs.

Isn't doing collection quests better than just walking under the watchful eyes of the harpies without any combat?

Of course, whether the metal ingots or the shiny gems or crystals offered by the stone dwarves were valuable was unknown, but still, these were quests from the 41st floor.

It's said that people are driven more by rewards that are close at hand rather than distant goals, and Han Se-ah was a prime example of that.

She remained cheerful at the thought of mining stones, though she still had no means to confront or hunt the harpies.

"First of all, since the harpies aren't particularly aggressive, let's look for the passage to the 42nd floor while searching for the items requested by the stone dwarves."

"Yellow sulfur rocks from the high parts of the mountain range, stalactites from the safe zones of the neighboring mountains, and red feathers of the harpies, right? Getting the harpies' feathers seems difficult."

"The guild's request is about collecting petals that only grow in the high mountains, so we can look for them together."

The party members, excited about encountering a different race, chat softly as they ascend the stairs.

How about me?

Well, for me, the girls are beings from another world.

Broadly speaking, that applies to Han Se-ah as well.

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Raei Translations

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After receiving the stone dwarves' quests, we resumed our exploration of the 41st floor, having briefly stepped outside the tower to prepare.

"...Something is stealthily following us from beneath the forest path. It might be the shadow leopard Roland mentioned."

"If the mana stone rolls down the cliff, it would be a waste, so I'll deal with it once it climbs up and attacks us."

Ideally, I'd like to quickly pierce through to the 45th floor using the lantern from Antenor, who retreated from there, but... that would just mess up the quest line again, tangling it like a knotted thread.

Wasn't the city of the stone dwarves itself hidden in a safe zone of the 41st floor?

There are leveling issues, quest problems, and even experiential issues outside the game for our party.

Thus, as we walked the cliff path under the surveillance of the harpies, the only thing that attacked us were the wild shadow leopards.

Stealthily crawling up the cliff beneath the forest path, the shadow leopards lived up to their name, trying to bite our ankles and leap away or suddenly attacking from above as they climbed the rock face.

"Phew, they're definitely tough!"

While other monsters roamed in groups of a dozen, the shadow leopard, proving why it traveled alone, unleashed its sharply honed claws.

It might look like a cute 'meow-meow punch' at first glance, but its power was vicious, matching that of a sword imbued with aura.

Each time the dark gray, almost black, leopard thrust its paws forward with a 'pap-pap-pap,' unleashing its meow-meow punches, Katie confronted it, gritting her teeth and emitting a pale blue aura.

After advancing to 5 and earning the title 'Frost Blade,' Katie showcased her combat prowess befitting the title.

Each time her pale blue aura skillfully avoided the claws and scraped the leopard's skin, frost formed on its sleek fur.

Kyaaang-!!

"Huaat-!"

As the situation turned against it, the shadow leopard, seemingly trying to flee, twitched and turned its body.

However, repeatedly struck by the overpowered ice attribute sword and slowed down by stacking debuffs, it couldn't retreat and was ultimately decapitated.

With a swish, Katie's sharp aura sliced off the dulled forepaw and decapitated the leopard, which then deflated with a woosh, turning into a mana stone.

Fitting for a lone monster of the 41st floor, the mana stone, larger than a fist, radiated a brilliant light.

Unlike the goblin's mana stones, which were so pale they were almost transparent, this one boasted a deep, rich blue.

"Wow, the color is really pretty. I heard some rich nobles use mana stones as jewels, and now I see why."

"Mana stones as jewels? ...It's definitely pretty. But considering the value, aren't mana stones much cheaper than actual gems?"

"Oh... right?"

Katie, catching her breath after the tough fight, picked up the leopard's mana stone.

Grace approached her, making light conversation.

The two looked at the mana stone, engaging in a whimsical chat for a reason.

Far away, amidst a group of dark harpies, something red was visible.

The red-feathered harpy looked like a tiny dot floating in the air.

Perhaps, realizing the old harpies were no match for us, it had decided to step in.

"...They can't hear us, can they?"

"Even if they have good eyesight, it's unlikely their hearing is that sharp. If they could hear us from this distance, they would've attacked us long ago."

The party, huddled together as if admiring the mana stone, exchanged opinions while keeping their gaze fixed on it.

During our exploration of the 41st floor and mining, we hadn't attempted to attack the harpies, who had been monitoring us from a distance.

Without firing a single meaningless arrow or spell, the harpies had simply followed us like a tail, allowing them to approach closer than expected.

Even with a commanding entity among them, the surveillance was carried out by the old harpies, indicating they were not very intelligent monsters.

As the old harpy let down its guard and cautiously approached, the beautiful harpy, observing this, used the old one as a shield to satisfy its curiosity and also moved closer.

"...Now's the time!"

"Okay!"

As a result, a barrage of alchemical arrows from Han Se-ah, who had just leveled up her alchemy thanks to the viewers' donations.

Pretending to admire the mana stone with empty hands, Grace swiftly took the bow and arrows from Han Se-ah's inventory and unleashed a rapid-fire volley in less than a second.

Firing arrows into the air without aiming, like a cowboy shooting a pistol, she never missed her mark.

The arrows flew past the bodies of the harpies, exploding in a net-like spread just in front of the higher-flying beautiful harpy, unfolding into a sticky, green web.

It was a intermediate-level alchemical sticky bomb used for capturing targets.

-How many donations did it take to make just one of these?

-Why do we have to pay for the strategies we devise?

-Arrows made from the spines of viewers caught by the sharp gaze of Gold Professor Han Se-ah.

-Oh, it sounds like the text of a legendary item description.

-There are birds that drink blood, birds that drink tears, and birds that suck the spine of viewers.

"Anyway, we caught it, that's what matters! ...Over there! It fell on that ridge!"

"Hopefully, it didn't roll down the cliff, right?"

The beautiful harpy, wrapped in bright green sticky goo, tumbled and spun as it fell amid the panicked, scurrying old harpies.

Its falling form, tangled in fluorescent green against its red feathers, was clearly visible.

Fortunately, instead of plummeting straight down, it spun around in desperate flaps of its wings, gently falling.

It had survival instincts, not disappearing into the abyss but crashing into the side of the mountain, right where we could reach it on the path.

Ignoring the confused harpies, we ran towards it and found the beautiful harpy, unconscious and covered in dirt and sticky goo.

"This means the mission is a success! It's not dead! Capturing a harpy alive for a close-up shot, mission accomplished!"

Capitalism, indeed, is a fearsome thing.