Chapter 49

Chapter 49: The Unspoken Rules Amongst Adventurers

“Huff……”

Struggling against the overwhelming urge to close his eyes and succumb to exhaustion, Izay gripped his spear tightly as he slowly approached the heavily wounded wyvern.

“Hrrrgh… Hrrrrrgghhh…”

The starry curtain surrounding the wyvern had dissipated, replaced by countless tiny crystals adhering to its scales, joints, and wounds.

Feeling as though a thousand-pound weight hung from every part of its body, the wyvern let out a terrifying growl, like a wild beast defending its territory, warning hunters that any further approach would be met with its frenzied attack.

Unfortunately, it was futile.

Izay, fully aware of its current predicament, paid no heed to the roars and continued stepping closer.

The silver-gray spear dragging along the ground was still enveloped in flickering azure flames, the high temperature scorching long marks into the ground.

“That’s enough!”

Izay mustered his strength, raising his spear high before plunging it forcefully into the wyvern’s chest.

“ROOOAAARRRR!!!”

In response to Izay’s final assault, the wyvern pinned to the ground began to wildly scream in agony.

Fear of death is a natural sentiment for any sentient being.

However, for powerful creatures possessing great strength, nothing could unlock their potential more than the specter of death itself.

Despite being shackled by heavy restraints, an unknown surge of power coursed through its body, violently twisting the spear embedded in its chest!

In the next instant, a whirlwind surged from its scaled tail, sweeping away everything nearby.

“!!”

Caught off guard due to mental fatigue, Izay instantly became alert as he stumbled from the wyvern’s movement.

Sensing impending danger, he instinctively ducked low to evade.

The tail sweep missed Izay but dislodged the spear stuck in the wyvern’s chest.

Now, Izay and the wyvern were closer than ever.

As if seizing this moment to attack, the wyvern’s gaping maw glowed with firelight, gathering fierce crimson flames within.

“*! Can’t you just die quietly already?!” (ps: * is a type of plant)

Taken aback by the wyvern’s desperate counterattack, Izay, who had thought the battle over, was now filled with anger.

The azure vapor surrounding him vanished, replaced by a determined resolve as Izay firmly grabbed the wyvern’s throat, silver light emanating from his palm.

An eight-pointed star magic array quickly formed in his hand.

“Starfall!!!”

“————————!”

BOOM!!!

A burst of starry brilliance erupted akin to the night sky.

A deep explosion resounded, causing the ground to tremble violently.

With Izay at the center, shockwaves spread outward, creating a circle of gray-white dust.

As the caster of the spell, Izay remained unscathed by his own magic, countless faint glowing points swirling around him, celebrating his victory.

Still, the wind generated by the explosion blew him back, landing him on his butt amidst the pockmarked ground as he gasped for breath.

“Are you hurt, Mr. Izay?”

Just as Izay fell, Ryu, her face concealed, arrived beside him, crouching down to ask with concern.

“Do you count feeling like I’m about to drop dead?”

“It seems you’re not injured…”

Ryu rolled her eyes upon hearing his attempt at humor.

In truth, Izay wasn’t lying.

His spiritual energy was nearly depleted, feeling as though he hadn’t slept for days.

He felt lightheaded, his head heavy while his feet felt light.

Even sitting on the ground, he couldn’t feel the weight of his legs…

Ryu observed Izay’s condition carefully.

There were no visible external injuries, but his face was extremely pale.

It must be “spiritual fatigue,” she judged internally, then began rummaging through Izay’s backpack.

Using magic comes at a cost.

Casting and activating magic requires the expenditure of spiritual energy (mana) relative to one’s physical stamina.

But just as physical stamina has limits, so too does spiritual energy eventually run dry.

Exhausting one’s spiritual energy results in losing consciousness without resistance.

In the dungeon, such unconsciousness can be quite perilous, so anyone capable of using magic usually exercises caution to avoid reaching that limit.

However, Izay’s current state…

Should we say it was unavoidable? Or perhaps expected?

After all, he had just used a large-scale, highly destructive magic earlier.

Soon, Ryu found the spiritual energy recovery medicine in the backpack, uncapped the glass bottle, and handed the potion to Izay.

“Thanks.”

Taking the medicine from Ryu, Izay tilted his head back and drank it all down.

After two doses of the spiritual energy recovery medicine, Izay’s pale complexion immediately improved significantly.

Truly, medicine is a wonderful thing, providing reassurance in various situations.

You can never have too much of this stuff…

“It’s over…”

“Yeah, it’s over…”

“Which Familial Group did that upper-class adventurer come from? So strong…”

“Don’t look at me; I don’t know either.”

“It’s definitely some prodigy from a major faction; just don’t know what title they hold.”

“I think so too~”

Many adventurers who had been watching the fight from various entrances of the cavern started whispering amongst themselves.

Their conversation mostly consisted of amazement and admiration.

“Damn, feels like this trip was a waste.”

“Hmph, that’s rich coming from someone who thinks they could’ve taken down that ‘Enhanced Species’ without the guy below stepping in.”

“Shit, you bastard… Do you even know not to rub salt in the wound?! What about my pride?”

“Pride? You have that? I’m shocked!”

Many adventuring parties were grateful they had survived, knowing full well they’d be slaughtered by that wyvern.

Others felt an inexplicable sense of loss, an indescribable emotion in their hearts.

Izay’s battle against the wyvern left them utterly astonished, especially when they realized how much stronger the wyvern was than they had anticipated, yet it was still defeated by Izay alone.

No amount of incoherent rambling could describe their complex feelings.

Actually, during the fight, many could have intervened directly.

But none chose to do so.

Among adventurers, there exists an unwritten rule.

Monsters born in the dungeon, whether encountered during regular exploration or bounty hunts, belong to whoever discovers them first.

Of course, if the first discoverer cannot defeat the monster, then it’s up to everyone else’s skill.

Most adventurers abide by this rule and harbor disdain for those who don’t.

People who like stealing kills are always in the minority.

This time, although Izay didn’t discover the wyvern first, since the initial discoverer couldn’t handle it, the fight passed on to him.

And because other adventurers arrived later than Izay, they chose not to interfere in this battle.

In fact, it seemed like there was no room for them to intervene anyway.

What kind of idiot could withstand such a massive star falling from the heavens??!!

Going in would be suicide…