On the other side, Eliane and Joel walked together in the city. She said,
"It's time. The second thing you'll do for me is this quest. I'll only assist you."
Joel said,
"I'm only E-rank. How can I do an A-rank quest?"
Eliane smiled and said,
"You'll be fine. You possess great power."
The A-rank quest was about the appearance of a new cursed zone causing famine in the surrounding villages.
Joel and Eliane headed to the forbidden zone. They met two adventurers, a young man in his twenties and a woman of the same age. The man was tall and had a giant-like build, with short red hair and silver armor. The woman also wore silver armor and had long brown hair. They were both C-rank adventurers and were heading there as well.
Eliane called out to them,
"What are you doing here?"
The man replied,
"There are villages nearby asking for help, so we came to assist."
Eliane replied,
"The quest can be very dangerous."
The two answered,
"Yes, we know."
Joel thought,
They're very brave.
The two groups separated slightly. Eliane and Joel entered the village. The people were starving to death. An old woman approached them.
"Are you the adventurers sent by the guild?" she asked.
Eliane replied,
"Yes."
The woman said loudly,
"Help us, we can't take it anymore or we will all die."
Eliane said,
"We'll take care of the problem."
She left with Joel toward the cursed zone. The two C-rank adventurers followed them.
Then they entered a sinister forest.
Eliane allowed Joel to open his eyes. He walked cautiously beside her. She knew the two C-rank adventurers were behind them, but she allowed it.
Eliane smiled as they advanced deeper into the forest.
Suddenly, a voice said,
"Hey!"
Joel turned.
A man dressed in black with red eyes like a demon approached him. Their eyes met, and his eyes exploded, but Joel was injured.
The man said,
"You must not be human."
His eyes began regenerating. This creature was the same man they had met at the Adventurers' Guild.
On the other side, the two C-rank adventurers advanced into the forest.
The woman said,
"Maybe it was a bad idea to accept this quest."
The man replied,
"The reward is great. It's just a quest. Nothing bad will happen to us. And if danger comes, we'll flee."
The woman looked at the man—
Then he was beheaded.
She panicked and ran, screaming, but something was already in front of her.
A dark creature with multiple mouths.
Smiling.
It devoured her.
Joel was injured and did not have regenerative power.
Eliane watched the scene while sitting on a rock.
Should I help them?
The monster approached Eliane with rage.
You must die.
It attacked.
Suddenly, her shield activated, and she smiled.
"You're quite an interesting monster. But I see you're not very strong."
The monster attacked her barrier repeatedly until a small crack appeared.
Eliane stood up from the rock and drew her weapon as if by magic. She sliced the monster from all sides with incredible speed.
The monster was shocked.
How is this possible?
On the other side, another creature that had come out of the man's body tried to flee.
Eliane said,
"No."
One of the rings on her left hand disappeared, and a barrier covered the entire area.
She smiled slightly.
"This is your tomb."
Suddenly, the monster grew and developed multiple mouths.
Eliane cut it from all sides. The monster attacked her, but it was useless. She dodged all its attacks with ease.
"It's time to end this," she whispered.
Suddenly, she appeared behind it, grabbed its head, absorbed its power, and it exploded into pieces.
Her barrier protected her from the blood.
Then, the other monster that had tried to flee was captured.
Eliane took out a small magical device that absorbed it.
"A new experience for me," she said with a slight smile.
Joel was terrified by her power.
Who is she really? he thought.
After that, Joel took care of the smaller monsters using his cursed eyes.
They completed their quest, and the village returned to normal.
On the way back, Joel asked,
"How can I become as strong as you?"
Eliane smiled and said,
"I have made many sacrifices. You see these five rings on my left hand? They represent five pacts with powerful demons."
She continued,
"Every word I say will increase the difficulty of everything you will have to do."
Joel swallowed.
"The first ring grants eternal youth, but it took my sight."
Joel swallowed again.
"The second grants incredible strength and reflexes, but the demon takes fifty percent of everything I consume."
"The third grants immense mana, but the demon sees everything I see."
Eliane stopped and looked at Joel.
"The difficulty is already very high. Do you want to continue?"
Joel immediately replied,
"No."
Eliane smiled slightly and said,
"Let's return to the city. It's almost time for training."