Not-So an Extra



"There's something written here."

The group's attention turned to the white-haired boy standing on top of the altar. 

"What does it say?" 

Sylvina asked, and Adrian read it aloud.

"[I am not alive, but I grow; I don't have lungs, but I need air; I don't have a mouth, but I must always be fed. What am I?]"

After a brief silence, Adrian continued.

"[Put your answer on the cauldron.]"

The group below assumed thoughtful poses, reciting the riddle in their heads, trying to find the answer.

Adrian couldn't help but scoff wryly.

'Ha. It was nothing but a child's riddle.'

Ignoring them, Adrian flicked his hand and lit the cauldron in front of him.

Before long, the ground began to shake violently, causing the group to panic.

"W-what is happening?"

As he sensed that something was amiss, Adrian swiftly leaped backward, descending from the altar.

Shortly after, the altar descended to the earth, and in its place arose a stone table with a large chest emerged.

Sylvina couldn't help but be perplexed before turning toward Adrian, her eyes wide with astonishment.

"Did you solve the riddle?"

Her tone dipped with surprise.

"Yes."

"How?"

Sylvina and the rest of the group looked at him in disbelief. 

They had been racking their brains trying to solve the riddle, and Adrian had solved it effortlessly.

"Wait. What is the answer?"

Rhea asked.

"The answer is fire."

The fire was not a living organism, but it could grow and spread. 

It didn't have lungs, but it needed oxygen to keep burning. 

And it didn't have a mouth, but it required fuel, such as wood, to keep burning.

He thought that it was a pretty easy riddle that everyone could solve.

"I see…"

"Hehe, I know we can count on our leader!"

He exclaimed proudly, and the rest of the group nodded their heads in agreement.

Upon hearing it, Adrian couldn't help but furrow his forehead

'What nonsense was this again?'

Taking a deep breath, he then retorted it.

"I'm not your leader."

Adrian spoke firmly, hoping to put an end to the discussion.

Nevertheless, Rhea smirked and responded.

"Of course not; that's because you are our leader!"

"Haa…"

Adrian sighed, feeling exasperated. 

He was just one member of the team, and they were all working together towards a common goal.

Brushing it off,  Adrian walked toward the chest.

"Let's just open the treasure."

He didn't want to dwell on the issue any longer.

Nodding in agreement, they approached the chest. 

Adrian unlocked it, and with a satisfying click, the lid swung open wide.

The group's eyes widened in disbelief as they beheld the contents of the chest. 

Sylvina gasped and covered her mouth in surprise, unable to believe what she was seeing.

"Is this… really for us?"

Seeing his friend continue to admire the contents, Adrian took the initiative and retrieved the sword from the chest.

Soon, the others followed suit, each selecting their own designated weapon.

The weapons in their hands glimmered under the bright sun upon admiring their new acquisitions. 

The quality of their weapons far surpassed those provided by the Academy. 

While his companions shed tears of joy at the sight of their new weapons, Adrian was left dumbfounded as he scrutinized the sword in his hand.

'What kind of rubbish is this?'

The sword's lackluster quality was a far cry from his beloved Damascus sword.

Shaking his head to dismiss the disappointment, Adrian stored the sword in his Magical Sphere.

Well, it was not half bad, actually; now he had a spare sword to break.

"I love treasure!"

Adrian glanced sideways upon hearing the exclamation, and he couldn't help but feel a bit overwhelmed by their energy and determination. 

Their faces and eyes were filled with excitement, and it was clear that they loved treasure hunting and were eager to find more. 

Despite feeling a bit out of his element, Adrian let out a thin smile and replied.

"Sure, let's go."

After checking the map on their Telesphere for nearby monsters, they set out to hunt their prey. 

Along the way, they gathered fruit and hunted small animals for their dinner. 

Thanks to the Survival Test they had taken, everything flowed naturally like a gentle current. 

The Academy had only provided them with maps and no supplies, but they had prepared beforehand. 

The first day passed by in a blink of an eye, and before they knew it, day two had arrived.

—Drrtt!!

As the ground shook, a chest emerged outside the altar, and they approached it. 

It was their last treasure chest since there were no available monsters on the map.

Having seen many amazing things, they were no longer surprised and quickly divided the loot. 

While they didn't always come across treasures, they occasionally stumbled upon junk items such as rusty weapons or broken jewelry. 

Despite this, the overall value of their loot made it all worthwhile.

Soon, they lifted their heads to look at the giant board score hovering in the air.

[ Top 10]

[ 1. Sovereign Class — 39 Chests ]

[ 2. Aristocrat Class — 22 Chests ]

[ … ]

Somehow, they managed to secure first place, thanks to Adrian's participation in the fight, which resulted in a quick victory.

—Pii —Pii —Pii 

When their Telesphere rang, all the players checked it, and a big dot appeared on their map, indicating that the hidden treasure had been triggered. 

Without wasting any time, the group left immediately.

Nevertheless, Adrian couldn't help but be curious about the monster that couldn't be defeated for years. 

He had looked for information about this game in the academy's history but found nothing about the clue.

After dashing through the wilderness for several minutes, they finally arrived at a clearing. 

As they emerged, they were awestruck by the sight before them.

A long, slender body covered in scales and a pair of large, powerful wings. 

Its elongated head featured a sharp beak and two menacing eyes that seemed to pierce through its prey. 

The creature's tail was long and tapered, ending in a sharp point.

'Wyvern.'

The monsters they had encountered so far ranged from D+ to C in rank. 

Yet, the monster standing in the middle of the clearance was on a different level. 

As expected of the game's final boss, this monster had a borderline rank of C+ to B-.

Nonetheless, Adrian couldn't help but raise an eyebrow when he sensed multiple presences, yet no one attacked or revealed themselves. 

This reminded him of an MMORPG where players would hide to steal the Boss kill—which was a cowardly action.

Nonetheless, Adrian shrugged indifferently.

If anyone dared to steal his prey, then he had no choice but to paralyze them before they could approach him. 

However, Adrian couldn't guarantee their safety, whether the paralysis was temporary or permanent. 

Well, it wasn't his fault; it was they who were attempting to do a bad thing.

As they approached the monster, it remained motionless, like a statue, and after a brief discussion of their plan, Adrian spoke up. 

"I'll go first."

The rest of the group nodded in agreement and assumed a defensive stance.

With that, Adrian began to chant.

"מטח ברק."

The moment the air crackled with Mana, soon, intricate Magic Circles materialized around the Wyvern.

With a deafening roar, the Circles unleashed a relentless barrage of lightning bolts toward the monster with blinding speed.

—Boom! —Boom! —Boom!

A thunderous series of explosions shook the ground and echoed through the air, hurling debris and thick black smoke high into the sky.

The shockwaves were so powerful that the trees swayed violently, their leaves rustling and shaking against the wind.

The birds took flight, their wings flapping frantically to escape the chaos.

Meanwhile, the players who had hidden were forced to cover their faces and hold onto the branches tightly, fearing for their safety.

The group behind the white-haired boy braced themselves, their hearts racing with fear and anticipation as they waited for the Wyvern's counterattack.

However, even after the smoke had settled, the wyvern remained motionless, not even twitching an inch from its spot.

Adrian's eyes flicked to the giant board hovering in the air.

The Wyvern's vital statistics were displayed in bold letters, revealing the monster's full health at 100%.

'So, it's true, huh?'

Despite unleashing a powerful spell that depleted 5% of his Mana, the Wyvern remained unscathed, not even flinching at the attack.

"Hiyaaa!!"

Glancing at the voice, Péréz was seen dashing toward the Wyvern with his fiery spear.

Arriving before it, he swung his spear, and the other followed suit.

They launched relentlessly launched Physical and Magical attacks, but the result remained the same.

The Wyvern remained unscathed and motionless.