Magical Beast Cubs

[The party worked together to kill the Giant-winged Bat, gaining a large amount of experience.]

lv.4(27/175)--lv.4(147/175)

They had gained a total of 120 experience points.

Zeliel scratched his head.

Not bad—30 more experience points than the Giant Slime had provided.

But it still wasn't enough to level up...

His experience suddenly jumped again by a small amount.

It changed from lv.4(147/175) to lv.4(157/175).

The kill notification that popped up on the panel read: [Giant-winged Bat Pup].

Zeliel couldn't help looking up.

Thick smoke still drifted through the high branches, and the faint shrieks of pups came from within the nest.

"Should we go up and clear them out?" Zeliel asked.

"We have to. One pup is worth fifty silver coins, and leaving them alive would only cause trouble."

Vales put away his longbow. "I'll handle it."

"I'll go with you," Zeliel volunteered.

He was afraid he wouldn't get any experience otherwise.

Gray leaned against the trunk, took off his boots, and sat down.

His calf had been cut earlier, and Marcus took out a medical kit to stop the bleeding.

"Be careful. Don't deal with the big one, then get ambushed by the little ones."

"Don't worry." Vales waved a hand.

The ancient tree the Giant-winged Bat had chosen for its nest was extremely tall. Even its lowest branches were seven or eight meters off the ground, but that posed no problem for Vales.

He stepped back a few paces, took a short run-up, and used his momentum to kick hard against the trunk several times.

Vales shot upward, grabbed a hanging vine, and began climbing with both arms. He quickly reached the first branch.

The entire process was smooth and fluid, filled with a sense of lightness.

Compared to him, Zeliel was far more straightforward.

He did not attempt Vales's difficult parkour maneuver and instead used the most primitive method: climbing with his bare hands.

The trunk was not smooth. There were many cracks between the bark, enough for Zeliel to get a firm grip and climb upward bit by bit.

Though he was a mage, years of farm work had given Zeliel a very solid physique.

Besides, the original owner of this body had often climbed trees to raid bird nests, and the muscle memory remained.

The two successfully climbed onto the thick branch where the Giant-winged Bat's nest rested. It was broad enough for both of them to walk steadily.

The closer Zeliel and Vales got to the nest, the stronger the stench from inside became.

A gust of foul wind hit them head-on, carrying the reek of charred branches and leaves, undigested rotting flesh, and some kind of pungent odor. It made them frown and cover their noses.

The nest had been built crudely, with countless branches crossed haphazardly together, barely holding its shape.

Some areas around the outside were still burning, sending up choking smoke.

As Vales considered whether to circle around and avoid the burning section, a Water Ball struck the nest directly.

The flames immediately weakened considerably.

Vales turned to Zeliel in surprise.

If he remembered correctly... Zeliel had displayed two new spells in today's battle, hadn't he?

One was a control spell that hindered the Giant-winged Bat's movements, and the other was the Water Ball he had just used.

He had far too many skills.

After Zeliel fired another three or four Water Balls, the flames finally went out completely.

The two climbed onto the nest and looked down from its edge.

Inside lay a thick layer of animal bones and fur. In the center of the nest were four Giant-winged Bat Pups, each about the size of a turkey and covered in only sparse black down.

Beside them lay another little one that had already been burned to death.

The Giant-winged Bat Pups huddled together and let out threatening chirps at Zeliel and Vales.

"They're really ugly..." Vales's eye twitched slightly.

Suddenly, the largest Giant-winged Bat Pup spread its wings of its own accord. It leaped more than a meter into the air and opened its mouth wide, biting straight at Zeliel!

Whoosh!

A cold flash streaked through the air.

Zeliel casually drew the rapier at his waist and slashed upward.

Blood sprayed through the air. Before the Giant-winged Bat Pup could land, it was cut in two, and the two chunks of flesh fell at Zeliel's feet.

He followed with another Wind Blade, cleanly killing the remaining three Giant-winged Bat Pups.

lv.4(157/175)--lv.5(22/200)

He had leveled up successfully!

Zeliel continued his previous stat allocation strategy, assigning all four points to Intelligence.

Strength: 65

Agility: 61

Constitution: 68

Spirit: 71

Intelligence: 74--78

Perception: 30

Charm: 47--48

Luck: 41

Talent Skill:

Spell Structure Evolution.

Magic power flowed through Zeliel's body more smoothly, and those complex, fragmented spell structures seemed to have become a little clearer.

Could this increase in Intelligence break through that threshold?

After dealing with the four Giant-winged Bat Pups, Zeliel and Vales removed the magic cores from their bodies before jumping down from the tree.

On the other side, Marcus had also begun collecting the spoils.

Besides the magic core within its body, a Giant-winged Bat's wing membrane was quite valuable as well.

Thin, flexible, and as resistant to tearing as several layers of tanned cowhide, it was excellent material for making leather armor and could also be used to brew potions.

"We'll split the reward three-three-two-two. Zeliel and I get three shares each, while Vales and Gray get two each. Any objections?" Marcus said.

In the battle against the Giant-winged Bat, Marcus had charged at the forefront and drawn its attacks the entire time. He had unquestionably been the main tank.

Zeliel's contribution had also been immense.

Heavy Pressure had given the party their first chance to focus fire, Wind Blade had dealt considerable damage, and he had also used Fireball to attack the nest and force the Giant-winged Bat into a decisive battle.

"Fine." Vales nodded.

Gray had no objections either. He gave Zeliel's shoulder a firm squeeze.

"Not bad, Zeliel. It hasn't been long, yet you've improved this quickly. Before long, we'll probably be no help at all against the magical beasts you hunt."

"How could that be?" Zeliel smiled modestly.

The setting sun rested against the mountains, and strands of lingering light poured down, burning the clouds crimson.

At the entrance to Creek Valley Village, a group of people led by Village Chief Bart waited anxiously for the result.

Their gazes were fixed on the entrance to the dense forest, their faces filled with unease.

What had happened to the Adventurers' Association party that had entered the forest...?

"It's almost dark. Why... why aren't they back yet?"

A woman holding a child spoke in a trembling voice. "Nothing could have happened to them, right?"

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Village Chief Bart rebuked her in a low voice. "Why say something so unlucky? They're warriors of the Adventurers' Association. We have to believe in them!"

Even so, Village Chief Bart unconsciously tightened his grip on his cane until his knuckles turned white.

He was no less nervous than anyone else.

"Look! What's that?"

A sharp-eyed youth pointed at a shadow at the edge of the woods and cried out in delight.

At his shout, everyone turned to look.