Until high school, students receive a basic education without delving deeply into any specific mana subjects. Following the soul space formation ceremony, they face crucial decisions. Some pursue an ordinary life, attending regular college, while others opt for safety, steering away from portals. Additionally, there are those who harbor resentment toward beasts, attributing their family's tragedy to them, or fear beasts so profoundly that they seek a peaceful life.
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As August scrolled through the emails his mom sent him, he couldn't find any recruitment academies that appealed to him. None of them were ranked within the top 100 globally, and without that ranking, they didn't offer the same opportunities as those within the ranking.
Opening the association's app, he aimed to improve his ranking by completing missions in the task center. However, as he scrolled through the available tasks, he found few that appealed to him. While some involved gathering, they often required searching for specific herbs or plants, a time-consuming endeavor he wasn't enthusiastic about undertaking.
As he scrolled through the tasks, a sudden notice caught his attention:
[Notice]
An adventurer has reported spotting a nest of snow vipers near the Everfrost Lake. Please exercise caution in that area. Those interested in joining the extermination squad are requested to report to the task center.
Requirement: Up to Bronze rank
[Attached: Map location]
"These snow vipers are F+ ranked bloodline, which is ideal for me to fight," August decided. He resolved to apply for the mission, knowing that he could earn additional points for association-initiated missions.
Upon arriving at the portal, August inspected it:
[Portal ★★1/2
Destination: Glacia]
"It could come in handy if I need to enter an unknown portal," he thought.
Passing through the portal, he only experienced a slight head shake this time.
"I must have built up some resistance to the motion sickness caused by portal travel," he surmised.
Glancing around the area, August noticed that the floor was constructed with intricate runes. He realized that he hadn't paid attention to them during his first travel, as he had been too excited to notice.
"There are some shield runes, but I don't recognize the others," August noted. He was familiar with one rune, but the rest were unknown to him.
"It must be to ensure that even if the shelter is attacked, no beast could pass through the portal and wreak havoc on Earth," August reasoned.
"I should head to the association task center," he decided.
The shelter city comprises several districts: residential, market, main house, portal, and task center.
The main house functions as the administrative hub of the shelter city. It serves as the residence of the guardian lord, tasked with overseeing and safeguarding the inhabitants. Additionally, it operates as the seat of government and the central command for defense, prioritizing the safety and welfare of the shelter city's residents.
August arrived at the task center and approached the counter.
"Hello, how can I help you?" August was greeted by the male receptionist as he approached the counter.
"I want to sell these," August said, handing over a pouch filled with spoils he had stored from his space storage before entering the task center. Despite space storage being common, he preferred not to reveal that he possessed one.
"Please wait a moment while I identify these," the receptionist said.
After a quick examination, he continued, "For one Rank 1 peak Beast core, 50C; for a pair of Rank 1 initial cores, totaling 18C; for one snow horned hare horn, 5C; and for two snow wolf fangs, totaling 6C, making it 79C. Would you like it in cash or Association points?"
"In Association points, please," August replied.
"Excellent, your profile will be updated accordingly," the receptionist assured him.
He could have fetched a higher price for his spoils in the market, but August prioritized upgrading his adventurer rank. To do so, he needed to participate in transactions within the association, both selling and buying items. This engagement would not only update his record but also contribute significantly to his rank advancement.
"I want to apply for the snow viper extermination spot," August declared.
"Are you sure?" the receptionist questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Why?" August pressed.
"Because no one wants to deal with a swarm of snow vipers until it's confirmed that there's a leader who gathered them," the receptionist explained with a hint of caution.
August reflected, 'It must be because no adventurer wants to deal with small fry when they could hunt a higher-ranked beast for greater profit.'
"What would happen if no one takes the mission?" August inquired.
"It would be assigned to a higher-ranked adventurer after a set amount of time has passed," the receptionist replied.
"Are you alone?" the receptionist asked, concern evident in his voice.
"Yeah, why?" August responded, curious.
"Because you might get swarmed by a group of snow vipers, and their poison can be quite challenging to handle," the receptionist warned.
"Don't worry, I can handle it," August reassured confidently.
"Your choice," the receptionist approved, though still a bit skeptical.
After he departed, he released Aurora once they passed through the shelter gate.
The location is to the east, near the forest area. The shelter is surrounded by the northern mountain range, the forest to the southeast, the frozen valley to the northwest, plains to the south, and the tunnels of no direction to the west.
As August neared the location, he encountered a vast frozen lake surrounded by hills. The lake, marked as a yellow area, served as the habitat for aquatic beasts.
Spotting a snow viper roaming nearby in search of food, August observed its formidable 3-meter length.
August used inspect to learn more details about the viper.
[ Snow viper ]
Rank: 1 (middle)
Bloodline rank: F+
Attribute: ice, poison
Ability: ice spike F5, frost poison F2
Status: mediocre, hungry ]
"Hm, it's not much stronger, Aurora can handle it," August assessed.
"Aurora, use ice spikes," he commanded.
Swiftly, Aurora summoned three ice spikes and launched them toward the snow viper. Distracted by its search for food, the snow viper was impaled in the head by one of the spikes, causing it to writhe in pain. In a swift follow-up, August swung his black blade, cleanly severing the viper's head from its body.
"Let's try something out," August murmured, using the blade to slice open the snow viper's belly and retrieve its core. With the core in hand, he attempted to use his ability extract, and to his delight, it worked.
"The feature works even if the body is missing the core," August noted.
[ Do you wish to extract the ice spike F5 ability of the snow viper? Y/N ]
August clicked 'Yes,' confirming the extraction process.
[ Ding! You have successfully extracted the ability ice spike F5. ]
Then he placed his hand on Aurora's head.
[ Do you wish to assign the ability ice spike F5 to your contracted beast 'Aurora'? Y/N ]
"Assign," August confirmed.
[ Transferring the ability… Transfer complete! ]
[ Your contracted beast Aurora has upgraded her mastery in the ability ice spike to F4. ]
'So it works. I can give already existing abilities, and their mastery goes up,' August noted, pleased with the outcome.
"What would happen if I upgrade the mastery to max, which is 10, and assign the same ability?" August pondered. "Hm, I'll get the answer after I get to that point."
Giving the core to Aurora, he resumed his search for more hunts.
After three hours of hunting, August and Aurora had successfully taken down a total of 20 snow vipers, leaving him excited but exhausted. Aurora, in particular, was drained of mana after using her abilities nonstop.
"Go inside the beast space," August instructed, allowing Aurora to retreat into the beast space to recover, while he decided to head back to the shelter.
As he made his way back, he caught sight of two large beasts engaged in a fierce battle over something.