[Side mission: The Lost Legends
1. Enter the Latham Ruins and discover the secrets within. (COMPLETED)
2. Reach the final room in the Latham Ruins. (COMPLETED)
3. Defeated the final boss, the Giant Knight. (COMPLETED)
4. Securing the mysterious box guarded by the Giant Knight.]
When Elijah opened his eyes, the first thing that greeted him was the familiar transparent screen, where the system informed him that he had successfully made progress on his mission.
The last thing Elijah remembered before losing consciousness was a stinging pain all over his body, to the point where Elijah felt he was hoarse at the time. However, he no longer felt that pain at this time. Elijah looked around in confusion. Then, Elijah finally realized that he was lying on the emergency bed he had brought in his supplies.
"You're finally awake, Elijah. Ah, don't be in a hurry to get up. With your condition, it's better for you if you don't move around too much for a while."
When Damian found that Elijah had woken up, the elf immediately approached Elijah while carrying two bowls of food that gave off a delicious aroma. Assisted by Damian, Elijah finally managed to sit up while leaning against the wall of the ruins. Damian handed Elijah one of the bowls in his hand, and Elijah accepted it without saying much.
Elijah's tired body seemed to need a lot of nourishment. So, as soon as Elijah shoveled the delicious food into his mouth, his hands couldn't stop until it was completely consumed.
"What exactly happened in the fight?"
After Elijah finished his meal and put the bowl on the floor, he finally asked Damian about what happened after he passed out. Damian had also finished eating when Elijah asked. The elf put his bowl away and then explained what had happened since Elijah lost consciousness.
"An hour has passed since you were found unconscious. Thanks to you, we managed to defeat the giant knight. There were no casualties in this incident. Even the cowardly human who escaped earlier has returned to the academy in advance to report what happened at the Latham Ruins to the academy."
The cowardly human Damian was referring to was definitely Gazel, and he must have been sent back by Quirin, who possessed teleportation magic. Elijah nodded to indicate that he understood what had happened when he lost consciousness. After they had fought the giant knight, there seemed to be no more threats that could endanger their lives in that place.
"Even so... as I suspected, you're amazing, Elijah! Although the elven race is famous for being the place where all magic comes from, I've never seen such great magic as the one you used against that giant knight. I may not know what kind of magic it is. However, I can tell that it is powerful and extraordinary!"
The conversation turned in another direction as Damian praised Elijah earnestly. The elf's eyes lit up as he discussed the Curse and Critical hit skills that Elijah used. And from the way Damian considered those skills to be magic only, Elijah could tell that those skills were not something common to NPCs.
"You may not have seen it because that ability is not magic, but an ability that I happened to learn after killing a fairly powerful monster."
Some powerful monsters did teach skills automatically to people who had killed them, like how Elijah got the body enchantment skill. The excuse Elijah made sense. So, Damian did not suspect Elijah was lying to him.
"Ah... I see. But still, the monster you killed must be super strong for you to be able to obtain such a great skill. This is the first time I've seen someone skilled at using both magic and a sword. Even though you're a human, I'm sure you can become even stronger than my brother in the future!"
The brother Damian was referring to was another elven prince. And normally, comparing a human to an elf who lived hundreds of years with experience was impossible and sounded offensive to the elves. However, Damian is the one who said it in this case. Not to mention, Elijah could only see the earnestness and admiration in Damian's eyes when the elf said so. Elijah smiled slightly. Although Elijah didn't want to sink into complacency, occasionally getting praise for his hard work didn't seem bad either.
Elijah looked at the empty room around him, then asked Damian another question.
"Then, where are the others at the moment?"
"Ah, about that...."
"Elijah, it's good to see you've regained your senses."
Damian's words were cut short when Henrik arrived and smiled as he greeted Elijah. Elijah's 'heroic' actions seemed to have left an impression on Henrik. Nowadays, even though Elijah is still the same cold man, Henrik would greet him as if they were old friends.
"I hope the food I made is to your taste."
Elijah looked down at his empty bowl, then gave a small nod. "The food was good. Thank you," he informed him.
"Damian, what happened to you?"
When Elijah heard the question Henrik asked Damian, Elijah finally remembered that he had been asking Damian something earlier. Damian coughed lightly to mask his annoyance. The elf looked at Elijah, then continued his explanation again.
"Actually, another room was opened once the enemy was defeated. The path in that room leads to the outside world. However, other than us not continuing our journey because we were waiting for you to wake up first, there is another reason why we are still in the Latham Ruins right now."
Damian looked at Henrik, and the werebeast immediately continued Damian's explanation of what they had just found.
"In that room, we found a large box filled with runes carved in layers. What the giant knight was trying to guard earlier seems to be that box. No one knows for sure what was actually inside the box. But right now, the runemaster is looking for a way to release the runes one by one."
The rune expert must be Quirin, while the box under study was the object the system wanted Elijah to secure from the Latham Ruins. Elijah involuntarily furrowed his brows after that. The object that the system wanted to secure through him. Elijah was also curious about what was actually inside the box.