The Last Adventurer

Chapter 7

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 7: Hero Killer (1)

1.

Circles are the most basic ability required for adventurers in Maple World to use the skills contained in items. They are also essential for becoming an adventurer.

The more circles one has, the stronger they become.

Therefore, all adventurers use various means and methods to increase the number of circles they have.

“You can make your circles stronger by eating Magic Stones.”

It wasn’t difficult to make the circles themselves stronger.

All one had to do was eat the Magic Stones that came out of defeating monsters.

Of course, it wasn’t like one could just eat any Magic Stone.

Magic Stones were ranked according to the level of the monster they came from. There were seven ranks in total: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

For the 1st circle, it didn’t matter which type of Magic Stone you ate, but for the 2nd circle, you needed to eat at least orange Magic Stones or higher to see any effect.

Additionally, you had to eat a tremendous amount of Magic Stones from ordinary monsters to see any effect.

Even so, most people didn’t think this task was difficult.

After all, it was a task with a clear end in sight.

“However, Circle Up, which increases the number of circles you have, can only be done through your own ability.”

The problem was hitting the Circle Up wall that existed at the end.

“Well, there are items that can help.”

Of course, there were a few items that could forcibly break through this wall, but they were meaningless.

“There are so few people in Maple World who have enough money to buy those items.”

Their value was simply beyond words.

In the end, there was only one way to Circle Up.

Talent!

But even talent alone wasn’t enough to achieve everything.

“Even with the talent to reach 6 circles, you can’t even reach 3 circles without effort and enlightenment.”

Circle Up was a very difficult task.

The same was true for El Paume.

The number of circles he achieved at the end was 8 circles.

That was in fact the last realm that could be reached.

As mentioned earlier, in order to make the circles stronger, you had to eat Magic Stones, and in the case of 7 circles, only purple Magic Stones would have any effect.

The problem is that there is no next step.

There were virtually no Magic Stones that could strengthen circles when you reached 8 circles.

But El Paume had reached 8 circles.

It means that he was born with the talent to reach the realm where he can face the Transcendent, the same realm as the Six Heroes.

However, it was by no means easy to reach.

It was only possible thanks to the tremendous effort, experience, and opportunity that followed over a long period of time.

In other words, El Paume already had experience.

That was thanks to it.

‘It’s 2 circles.’

The moment El Paume ate the Magic Stone that Chev had, the moment he stood on the border between 1 circle and 2 circles, he was able to reach 2 circles in one breath.

It was an amazing achievement.

‘I reached 2 circles…… It was after half a year after I opened 1 circle.’

Even El Paume, who was born with tremendous talent, was unable to open 2 circles so quickly in the past.

The harvest was not the only one.

‘Chev and his party also had a lot of things.’

Before he returned to the past, he had not gained anything from this Mystic Gate, but this time it was different.

‘If I sell them roughly, I can get over 100,000 mesos.’

Chev and his party, who had been hunting beginners, had a lot of things that were worth more than their skills.

1 million mesos.

For El Paume, who had to buy his freedom, this was also a significant harvest.

However, El Paume had his sights set on a much larger income.

‘Two definite ones.’

The fact that there were clear and noticeable results.

It was true.

Right now, El Paume had very clear results.

‘Then I need to change the contract again.’

Now it was time to use it.

2.

“El Paume is back alive?”

The moment he received the report, Ebisu’s expression hardened.

“They were beginner hunters?”

The content of the report itself was shocking.

However, his expression didn’t harden because of the beginner hunters.

To be honest, to Ebisu, beginner hunters were no different from slightly larger bugs he might see on the street.

They were annoying to see, but not enough to evoke any emotion.

They were that common.

And he didn’t really care what those beginner hunters were doing.

“The boss inside was a Gold Slime?”

“Yes.”

“Then the items must have all melted…….”

The problem was the fact that the boss monster of that Mystic Gate was a Gold Slime.

“El Paume came out alive…….”

The decisive factor was that they could no longer enter that Mystic Gate.

That was why Ebisu’s expression hardened.

This was an unexpectedly big deal.

The number of items beyond that Mystic Gate was at least 20, and they had all disappeared overnight.

“There’s no way he could have caught the Gold Slime.”

If he had at least brought back the Gold Slime’s Magic Stone, the story would be different, but that was like finding an item on the street.

So Ebisu sighed.

‘Of all things, he comes out alive, that damn slave, he’s just lucky.’

If El Paume had died there, the Mystic Gate would have remained intact.

Of course, the fact that the items inside would disappear would not change, but that was still better.

What mattered now was that Ebisu had lost a Mystic Gate of immense value.

‘The damage is huge.’

So it meant that this loss was Ebisu’s fault.

In every way, it was the worst.

“Over there…….”

The employee spoke to Ebisu, who was thinking this way.

“He caught that.”

“What?”

“El Paume, he caught the Gold Slime.”

3.

“Yes, I caught it.”

Ebisu blinked involuntarily at the sight of El Paume speaking.

That was a mistake.

It was unprofessional for a merchant to reveal his emotions and expressions in front of an adventurer.

In other words, the shock Ebisu received was that great.

“You caught it?”

In front of the surprised Ebisu, El Paume showed his left wrist.

The wrist with two black lines wrapped around it.

‘2nd Circle.’

That was the proof.

Proof that El Paume had caught the Gold Slime beyond the Mystic Gate and consumed its Magic Stone.

Of course, it wasn’t definitive proof.

Magic Stones were tradable items, and they could be obtained without necessarily catching a Gold Slime.

However, would El Paume, who had been living as a debt slave just a few days ago, purchase Magic Stones to strengthen his circles?

Even if he did, Circle Up was a separate matter. That meant that El Paume had innate talent.

‘He’s not an ordinary guy.’

To put it simply, El Paume was not an ordinary adventurer.

‘Ah.’

Only then did Ebisu come to his senses.

“Ahem.”

Ebisu coughed dryly.

“That’s impressive. It’s the first time I’ve seen an adventurer reach 2nd Circle so quickly in my time here.”

He first gave him some praise.

And then he started thinking.

‘I need to get him.’

To Ebisu, El Paume was a sprout with incomparable talent compared to ordinary adventurers.

That’s why he was troubled.

‘If he’s not an idiot, he should know his own level.’

Ordinary adventurers could be handled with a few tricks, but the El Paume in front of him was different.

‘After all, three years as a bait slave is like spending three years in hell.’

That was why.

“I’ve seen cases where people open 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th Circle the moment they open their first Circle, but it’s the first time I’ve seen someone go from 1st Circle to 2nd Circle in just a few days. That’s amazing. You have a rare talent.”

Ebisu didn’t waste time with empty flattery.

“At this level, it’s safe to sign a contract with you as a D-rank adventurer.”

He acknowledged him.

And then he made an offer.

“And if you work with me, I’ll treat you as a C-rank adventurer.”

It was an extraordinary offer.

Usually, 1st Circle adventurers were treated as F to E-rank, and 2nd Circle adventurers were treated as D-rank.

Of course, C-rank adventurers meant 3rd Circle adventurers.

And the difference between a C-rank adventurer and a D-rank adventurer was simply incomparable. That’s how big the difference was in the chances of becoming a C-rank adventurer out of 100 D-rank adventurers.

“Of course, I can’t give you full C-rank adventurer treatment. I can only give you the equivalent convenience.”

Therefore, Ebisu couldn’t treat El Paume, a 2nd Circle, as a C-rank adventurer on his own, but even so, what he was saying was definitely an extraordinary offer.

‘As expected.’

That was exactly what El Paume was aiming for.

“Thank you.”

A Different Treatment

“I will work hard from now on.”

“You’re a reasonable person. I really like you.”

At El Paume’s words, Ebisu burst out laughing and nodded his head.

‘To think I would get my hands on such a useful pawn.’

Of course, at this moment, Ebisu only saw El Paume as a disposable tool that he could use and discard at any time.

‘He looks like he just got his hands on a useful pawn.’

El Paume knew that too.

However, El Paume didn’t attach much meaning to that fact. It was a relationship where they were using each other anyway.

That’s why El Paume focused on the present moment.

“Since you’re a reasonable person, I’ll show you some especially good commissions. Just wait a moment.”

The moment Ebisu finished speaking and knocked on his desk, the employee who was outside came in. Ebisu extended one finger to the employee, who nodded and quickly left.

A short while later, the employee returned.

With a fairly thick stack of documents.

Thud!

The stack of documents was placed in front of El Paume.

They were request forms.

“These are the best requests among the D-rank adventurer requests. It shouldn’t be a problem to pay back 1 million mesos.”

The requests had very high rewards.

Of course, the high rewards didn’t really excite El Paume.

‘I need money.’

It’s not like he didn’t need money. In a way, El Paume was the adventurer who needed money more than anyone else right now.

‘But this kind of small change is meaningless.’

The point was that El Paume needed a huge amount of mesos to buy what he wanted.

‘The only way to get those is to break into Phantom’s warehouse.’

One of the heroes who sealed the Black Mage and considered the richest man in Maple World, the thief known as Phantom. Only by selling the items in his warehouse would El Paume be able to get what he wanted.

More than anything, El Paume knew.

‘These are just scraps.’

That the real good commissions, the really important ones, never came to El Paume.

It was obvious.

‘Ebisu is still testing me.’

There was no way he would trust El Paume with such important tasks, tasks where failure was not tolerated, tasks that could put his own neck on the line.

But that was what El Paume needed.

‘The Red-rank 100-man Gate attack will start soon.’

El Paume knew in particular.

‘That Gate where the upper echelons of Lith Harbor and the promising 2nd Circle and below players from the guilds will compete.’

That a huge issue that would excite the adventurers of Victoria Island was coming.

He needed to gain Ebisu’s approval before then.

And to get that approval, it would take too long to just solve these petty requests.

‘Time is more precious than life.’

It was a method that El Paume, who was more than anyone short on time, could not accept.

That’s why El Paume didn’t hesitate.

‘The value of an adventurer is only one thing.’

There was no reason to hesitate.

‘To accomplish an adventure that no one else can.’

The answer was clear.

“Mr. Ebisu.”

So El Paume said.

“I have a request.”

To which Ebis replied,

“Tell me what it is.”

With a slightly amused smile.

“Can you lend me some money?”

“What?”

But at El Paume’s words, the smile on Ebisu’s lips began to falter.

Of course, Ebisu quickly regained his smile.

It was a sudden request, but it wasn’t a surprising one.

After all, what the Capore upper echelons did best was lend money and then collect it.

And Ebisu was good at it, which is why he was now the left-hand man of the executive Laka.

“So, how much do you need?”

Ebisu, who had regained his composure, asked.

“I need 1 million mesos.”

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]