I Reincarnated As A Stick

Chapter 258: The Hunt Begins

A minute or so before Argentum and Blob decided to leave the Azure Shores to make their way towards Verdant Breeze Town.

Within the inner depths of the Flame Spirit Inheritance, a humanoid made out of red energy radiated an aura of immense shock and surprise as it stood up from the chair it made with its energy. It walked around the room it was in for a short while before deciding to sit down on the chair it made once more, letting out a long sigh of wonder soon after. The being then muttered to itself, saying, “Who knew Felix’s prediction would actually be correct? To think that Argentum is actually going to try and learn the Lesser Origin element…”

“Does he really believe that he could learn it without a problem or does he just want to die?” this being continued to mutter, thinking that she might go insane if she mulled over it for a bit longer. Of course, this being was none other than Eleanor, the owner of the Flame Spirit Inheritance, as well as ‘Argentum’s teacher’.

Whoosh!

A few seconds after mulling over the topic, Eleanor went ahead and conjured a huge ball of red energy before sending it towards a certain direction. It was only after a couple of minutes or so until a ball of energy of the same size came to where she was, albeit taking on a blue hue. Knowing who had conjured this ball of energy, which was now hovering in front of her, she then infused her own energy into this ball, allowing a familiar voice for her to resound throughout her mind not long after.

“So…what happened? Did Argentum say he was going to learn the Lesser Origin element?” the familiar voice asked her, taking on a masculine tone that was pleasing to hear. This voice came from none other than Felix, the owner of the Grand Blue Inheritance.

Letting out a sigh in response to the question, Eleanor then replied, “Surprisingly, yes. He admitted that he was going to learn the Lesser Origin element.”

“Huh?” Just as she was finished with her reply, Felix could not help but utter a sound of disbelief as he did not expect Argentum to admit learning such an element that easily. Feeling that the response Eleanor got from Argentum was a bit off, he then asked her, “Did you cast a spell to see whether he was lying or not?”

“Of course. How would I forget something like that?” the Undying Flame Spirit replied in a tone that sounded she was being wronged. She then added, “Just from his tone as he answered, it seemed that he was confident in learning the Lesser Origin element without a problem.”

“As you’ve said, he was confident that he was going to succeed in learning the Lesser Origin element,” Felix said after Eleanor was done talking. “Do you think he knows about the Origin Trials?”

“Probably,” Eleanor replied concisely. “If not, he wouldn’t respond in that manner, don’t you think?”

“Fair enough,” Felix said with a light sigh. “But don’t you think it’s too early for a Normal-grade Pseudo-Animate like Argentum to try and clear the Origin Trials?”

“Of course I do. How could I not?” Eleanor said in a slightly worried tone. She then pondered over it for a bit, a thought that seemed to make sense forming in her mind not long after. With that in mind, she then told Felix, “But now that I think about it…Argentum’s idea to learn the Lesser Origin element early on makes sense.”

“In what way?” Felix asked as a response, to which the Undying Flame Spirit responded, “If he learns the Lesser Origin element at his current grade, then his control over the element would be far better than those that learned the Lesser Origin element at a higher grade.”

“In that case, wouldn’t that make him a near-invincible power?” Eleanor added after that, asking Felix. In response, Felix pondered over Eleanor’s question and thought that it did make sense, but he still could not help but think that the chances of Argentum passing through the Origin Trials were low. With that in mind, he asked her, “Can’t you like dissuade him or something? You’re his teacher, right?”

“I may be his teacher, but I won’t restrict a being from achieving their dreams,” Eleanor said, letting out a slightly crazed chuckle. At this moment, she was quite optimistic that Argentum had the ability to learn the Lesser Origin element, even though she was against it just a while ago. She did not know what changed her opinion of Argentum in succeeding, but she presumed that it was probably due to her putting herself in his shoes, allowing her to get an inkling of an idea as to what Argentum had in mind.

“Plus, he’s sensible. He doesn’t seem like a being that moves on impulse,” Eleanor added, only to remember that he lashed out at her the very first time they met each other. With that in mind, she let out an awkward chuckle before saying, “Well…a being that sometimes moves on impulse.”

“Are you really sure you want him to take on the path that might lead to eventual death?” Felix asked her one more time, but heard no response from her even after a few seconds. In the end, he could not help but let out a low sigh. A few seconds later, his tone changed to that of slight curiosity as he asked her, “Changing the topic, uh…how was it talking to Argentum?”

“Huh? What kind of question is that?” Eleanor asked with a tone of slight confusion before adding, “Shouldn’t you just go ahead and contact him through your own method?”

“Well, you know…he might be busy because he’s preparing to learn the Lesser Origin element and all that…and I haven’t really used something like this so…” Felix responded to her question with a slightly awkward chuckle, leading to Eleanor letting out a low sigh before saying, “You do have a point there.”

“Fine. I’ll let you know how it feels like.”

“First, go ahead and contact me through the method you have with Argentum.”

“…”

“But aren’t I talking with you right now?”

“Exactly. That’s what it feels like.”

“…”

“…tch.”

…

On the other hand…

In the middle of the wilderness, two Pseudo-Animates were looking at each other with an awkward aura suffusing around them, brought about by the incident that had happened just before.

These two Pseudo-Animates were none other than Argentum and Blob. Just a while ago, Blob had successfully finished his Power Baptism by utilizing the full extent of his strength to more or less disperse the third lightning bolt by punching it with a shield enchanted by his creator.

The two of them looked at each other for a bit more before Argentum went ahead and took the initiative to disperse the awkward air surrounding them. As he imitated the sound of one clearing their throat, he then focused his sense of vision towards Blob before asking him, “Do you mind if I look at your stats for a bit, Blob?”

In response, Blob let out an inward sigh of relief as he realized that Argentum was dispersing the awkward air surrounding them. With an aura of slight happiness, he responded, “Do you really have to ask me that, Argentum? Be my guest. You can check on my stats whenever you want.”

“I’m just checking your stats after you’ve gone a Power Baptism, that’s all,” Argentum said after Blob was finished responding, silently commanding the system to bring up Blob’s stats in front of his field of vision.

Ding!

Accompanied by a notification sound, a small holographic screen appeared in front of Argentum’s face, allowing him to check how much his stats had improved. Unsurprisingly, after a single skim through the numbers listed on the screen, Argentum was left at a loss for words as he pondered as to how strong Blob currently was when compared to Animates.

________

[Blob] (Level 11/40)

Experience: 3270/16400

Existence Level: Pseudo-Animate (Epic)

Species: Infernal Aegis Spirit

Power Baptism: 1

—————

[HP]: 4900/4900

[MP]: 1200/1200

—————

Stats:

Vitality – 245 (x10)

Strength – 155 (x10)

Defense – 345 (x10)

Agility – 210 (x10)

Intelligence – 120 (x10)

________

Rummaging through Aurus’s memories regarding conversion factors for existence levels, it took Argentum quite a while to come to a conclusion after calculating the stats Blob currently had. He was able to calculate that the defensive ability Blob currently had was equivalent to that of an Animate at around Rank 3 or 4, though he was not sure whether that would truly apply in combat.

As for Blob’s other abilities, it was equivalent to that of a Rank 2 or 3 Animate…if that said Animate practiced the highest quality Tempering and Ascension skills possible. To Argentum, low-level Tempering and Ascension skills were just better than nothing. Of course, if Blob wanted to, he could fight against Rank 5 or even Rank 6 Animates without a problem, given that the skills they practiced were of a low quality.

Closing the status screen in front of his vision not long after, Argentum could not help but look at Blob from another perspective. Not only that, but finally seeing how much strength a single Power Baptism would give him, he was also tempted to go ahead and attempt a Power Baptism right now. Fortunately, his rational side still won, making him remember the promise he made for himself that he was going to attempt it after he was finished ransacking Verdant Breeze Town.

Scratching his head in slight awkwardness, Argentum went ahead and asked Blob, “Could you take a step forward at your full power?”

“Hm?” Blob tilted his head in slight confusion, wondering why Argentum would ask him to do such a mundane thing. Nevertheless, he nodded his head in response to Argentum’s request, taking a step forward as he channeled all of the power inside his body…

Only to propel multiple meters forward.

Whoosh!

With just one casual step, Blob was able to move over a hundred meters forward, eliciting Argentum to radiate an aura of complete shock as he realized that he had underestimated the benefits brought by a Power Baptism. On the other hand, Blob was shocked as well, noticing that the area surrounding him was now slightly different from what he was seeing before. Turning around to check where Argentum was, he was appalled to find out that Argentum was incredibly far away from him.

Just as Blob was about to head back to where Argentum was, Argentum went ahead and utilized the strongest movement speed boosting spell he had in his arsenal, taking a few seconds or so for him to arrive in front of Blob as he radiated an aura of immense excitement.

“Blob, I have a request for you,” Argentum said in a cheerful tone, having a feeling that Blob would definitely be able to do it.

“What kind of request is it?” Blob asked, getting the feeling that the request Argentum was about to ask him would be something that he could do with his current strength.

“Utilizing the route I’ve given you a few days ago, could you head to Verdant Breeze Town before the sun sets?” Argentum asked, looking at the position of the sun a few seconds later. Noticing that the sun had already passed the peak, Argentum estimated that there were around 4 hours or so before the sun started to set.

“On second thought, head to Verdant Breeze Town before a new day starts,” Argentum changed his mind a few seconds later, thinking that it was somewhat impossible for him to ask Blob, who was just starting to acclimate himself to his newly improved stats. Surprisingly, rather than feeling pressured, Blob radiated an aura of immense excitement as he replied, “I’ll head to Verdant Breeze Town as fast as possible! I wanna see how fast I can go!”

In response, Argentum let out an awkward laugh as he hastily transformed into a speck of red sand, landing on Blob’s right shoulder soon after. After making sure that Argentum was truly on his shoulder, Blob then warmed himself up by lightly stretching his body before channeling all of the strength he could muster from his body towards his legs. Soon after, Blob and Argentum were now far away from their original position, dashing towards Verdant Breeze Town at a speed unbelievable for normal Animates.

…

And so, a few hours have passed since Argentum requested Blob to arrive at Verdant Breeze Town before the sun set. Of course, Argentum told Blob that it would be fine if they had arrived at night, but Blob was adamant that he would be able to arrive before the sun set.

And surprisingly, they did.

“Haah…haah…” After undergoing a Power Baptism, the amount of stamina he had was increased tenfold, allowing him to run faster for far longer, traversing long distances in a matter of minutes. As for the number of breaks he took during this journey, it was only brought down to only a couple of breaks, with the intent of the break either being truly recuperating or fighting against beasts to increase his strength by a bit.

Nevertheless, seeing the tall stone walls that covered the surrounding in front of them, with a large gate smack dab in the middle of the stone walls, Blob could not help but radiate an aura of happiness as he said in a panting manner, “We’ve…arrived…Argentum…phew…”

“You actually did it…” Argentum, who was still a speck of red sand, could not believe that Blob actually arrived in front of the stone walls that surrounded the town before the sun had set. In fact, Argentum looked at the position of the sun as of now and realized that there was still about half an hour before the sun would set!

Whoosh!

Without hesitation, Argentum went ahead and reverted to his previous form before looking at the top of the stone walls that surrounded the town. Referencing the memories Aurus had regarding the town, he knew that there were guards who would be guarding the stone walls at night. Since it was not night yet, there were no guards on the top of the walls, allowing Argentum and Blob to take a breather wherein they knew they were safe, especially Blob.

After a couple of minutes, Argentum silently urged Blob to head towards some nearby trees, to which Blob agreed and followed Argentum. After arriving there, Blob went ahead and asked Argentum, “What are we doing here?”

“Once the sun sets, guards will start patrolling the walls of the town we’re about to enter, so it’s better for us to hide from their line of sight right now,” Argentum responded. He then added, “Do you want to be taken by them?”

“Is it bad if I get taken away by them?” Blob asked, oblivious to the relationship between Animates and Pseudo-Animates. In response, Argentum succinctly said, “Incredibly bad. That’s all I’ll say. Anyways, before we enter the town, make sure to morph into an incredibly small thing so we won’t get caught by the Animates.”

“I understand,” Blob said as he nodded in understanding. Just as he looked at the stone walls surrounding the town, a thought surfaced in his mind. With this in mind, he turned his sense of vision to look at Argentum and ask, “Now that I think about it, you haven’t told me what we’re going to do here. You just told me that we need to arrive here. So…what are we going to do here?”

“We’re going to grab something inside this town,” Argentum responded in a slightly sinister tone as he softly cackled. “A thing that would help me improve in strength very fast.”

Recalling the item that Aurus obtained from this town in a quest, Argentum looked at the town walls with an avaricious gaze. He then told Blob the name of the item he wanted from the town.

“The Tome of the Four Elements.”

“Huh?”

“That’s the item I’m aiming for in this town.”