A silvery arc of light flashed through the air, accompanied by a faint tearing sound.
"Thwack!"
The blade tip precisely sliced into the Fluorescent Mycenen's blue-green cap mushroom, and the creature's little legs only thrashed wildly for a moment before going still.
Kelvin elegantly withdrew his curved blade, blowing a breath across its surface.
"See that? Sweetheart Elara, old buddy Bloom, this is the skill of a veteran adventurer!"
"Visaji eyesight combined with ranger precision makes dealing with these 'glowing cuties' way too easy."
He proudly lifted his chin, his golden curls still prominent even in the dim light.
Elara completely ignored her captain's performance, crouching nearby as she carefully used a small wooden shovel to dig up a peculiar plant growing beside a decaying tree root.
"It's Water Bell Orchid!"
"The books say it only grows near mana nodes and is premium material for making clarity potions. It seems the magical environment here is even more active than described."
Meanwhile, Bloom proved quite supportive, grinning widely and giving a thumbs-up.
"Ha, as expected of our captain! That slash had real power behind it!"
This simple praise instantly gratified Kelvin immensely, satisfying his vanity to the extreme.
He waved his hand grandly, "Let's go, onward! 'Miracle' Yano's treasure awaits us!"
The team continued trekking through the damp forest.
Kelvin led the way, his mood seeming to lighten with Bloom's compliments and Elara's occasional discoveries of novel plants.
The moss beneath their feet felt soft as carpet, sunlight filtering through gaps to create patches of light, everything appearing... unnaturally tranquil.
"Tsk, this swamp forest isn't as terrifying as the rumors claim."
"Sleeping magical creatures, miasma everywhere... I think those cowards made it all up to scare people."
He casually used his curved blade to push aside hanging vines while muttering, even finding the leisure to hum a Visaji tune.
Just then, a fist-sized Burrowing Beetle slowly crawled through the leaf litter near his feet, making rustling sounds.
"Where'd this rock lump come from? Get lost."
Without even looking closely, Kelvin kicked the beetle away.
"Whoosh—thump!"
The unfortunate beetle traced an arc through the air, slammed into a large tree trunk with a dull impact sound, then fell into the thick rotting leaves upside down, struggling dizzily.
Kelvin snorted dismissively and continued forward without concern.
He glanced back at his teammates behind him—Elara carefully storing the freshly gathered Water Bell Orchid in a small cloth bag with focused concentration, while Bloom moved like a mobile fortress, vigilantly scanning their rear.
Looking at these two "greenhorns" who trusted him completely, an inexplicable ripple stirred in Kelvin's heart, a distant sense of familiarity.
It was also at a forest edge like this, also three people... an equally boastful captain, an equally somewhat timid but determined young companion, and an equally ignorant version of himself...
Then came that Bugbear roaring out from the shadows! The captain's terrified, twisted face, and his figure immediately turning to flee disappearing into the dense forest...
Leaving only the desperate himself and that young companion smashed into a bloody pulp by the Bugbear's massive club.
The ease on Kelvin's face instantly froze, a barely noticeable shadow passing through his eyes.
Hah, adventure?
Bullshit camaraderie and glory!
Staying alive and getting paid—that's what really matters.
After that incident, he understood—you have to be cold-blooded, keeping your eyes only on valuable things!
What's wrong with being money-hungry? Better than dying for no good reason!
He shook his head vigorously, as if trying to fling away that unpleasant memory along with any unwanted softness in his heart.
"Look ahead!"
Elara's delighted voice broke the brief silence.
Passing through an exceptionally dense curtain of vines, a small clearing appeared before them.
In the center of the clearing stood several sections of crumbling low walls, constructed from dark brown bricks and stones, exuding an ancient and mysterious atmosphere.
"Ruins! Real ruins!"
Kelvin's eyes instantly lit up as if seeing treasure chests overflowing with gold coins.
"I told you, 'Miracle' Yano wouldn't lie! Quick, let's check it out!"
He eagerly rushed in first, his boots nearly slipping on the slick moss.
Elara approached the low wall, extending her fair fingers to gently brush away the moss covering it, carefully feeling the wall's material.
"Huh? Captain Kelvin... these bricks... they look somewhat new?"
Kelvin was excitedly rummaging through a pile of collapsed stones and didn't turn back, waving his hand dismissively.
"Ah, don't worry about details! The important thing is there's treasure! Hurry and find the treasure chest!"
Completely immersed in fantasies of imminent wealth, he ignored the magic apprentice's keen observation.
While the rookie team of three immersed themselves in the joy of exploring ruins, they remained unaware that in the dark swamp, a pair of round eyes was watching them unblinkingly.
That round, gelatinous body... was none other than this swamp's Slime Lord.
Miscalculation—forgot to age the newly built walls, Chen Yu thought.
Next time must remember to slather them thick with mud and vines in advance... and maybe add some bird droppings, then no adventurer would dare touch them.
"Looks like they're about to encounter the boss I carefully prepared."
Chen Yu looked toward the depths of the ruins, where suppressed low growls could faintly be heard.
That was the actor he'd captured with some effort a few days ago—a particularly irritable Corrupted Jackal.
...
Inside the ruins, unlike Kelvin who was haphazardly digging through debris, Bloom habitually observed the ground and discovered several unusually fresh droppings partially buried under leaves.
"Captain, there's wolf droppings here, and... they're very fresh, with a rotten stench. Something's not right."
"Wolf droppings?!"
Kelvin, who had been trying to move a large rock, froze instantly, cold sweat immediately breaking out.
Jackals?! And corrupted ones?!
These Bronze-tier scum usually move in packs, are swift and cunning, and extremely vindictive!
His rookie team members were all just initiates, not even official professionals. One-on-one against Bronze-tier magical creatures might be manageable.
But if targeted by a pack of Corrupted Jackals in these complex ruins, escape would be impossible!
Elara also nervously gripped her staff, her knuckles turning pale.
Kelvin forcibly suppressed the fear in his heart, signaling the two to stay quiet.
He crouched low, carefully following Bloom's direction, using the broken walls for cover as he advanced, with Elara and Bloom close behind.
In the deepest part of the ruins, behind a relatively intact arched doorway, indeed lay a Corrupted Jackal.
It was larger than an ordinary wolf, with filthy, matted fur, multiple festering sores oozing pus, and it was anxiously pawing at the ground.
Behind it, not far away, a wooden box half-buried in soil that looked thoroughly decayed was emitting an alluring "treasure glow" in Kelvin's eyes.
The three held their breath observing for quite a while. Elara even risked peeking out half her head to carefully confirm.
"Only... only one?"
"And it seems injured, moving somewhat sluggishly."
Elara whispered in a voice barely audible, carrying incredible surprise.
"Just one?"
Kelvin's eyes instantly ignited with the light of greed.