"Well then, without delay, let’s try out our newly acquired Falna!"
Kazuma had obtained a new Skill and was eager to discover the extent of his increased strength.
After all, he had begged Aqua for this ability. If it fell short of his expectations, he would be devastated.
"Agreed! I want to know just how powerful I’ve become too!" Megumin swept her cape behind her and raised her staff high, "My Explosion Magic now far surpasses its previous limits! With this power, I could easily defeat the Demon King!"
Megumin was getting carried away.
Indeed, with her abundant Mana and powerful Skills combined with the strongest〘Explosion Magic〙, her true potential was immeasurable.
Darkness had similarly transformed. As she tested her enhanced body, now more than twice as resilient, she marveled at the Falna’s effects.
Yet her primary concern wasn’t about growing stronger — it was about her increased capacity for endurance.
When it came to taking hits, she was a professional!
She had spent years training rigorously to withstand attacks, to endure longer and experience more pain. This new Skill filled her with satisfaction!
Everyone went to the Adventurer’s Guild.
After a brief exchange with Luna at the counter, they accepted the quest to {Subjugate Snow Sprites}.
This was no ordinary mission!
Snow Sprites may seem like harmless snow elementals — and they are — but hunting too many summons the formidable Winter Shogun!
The master of the Snow Sprites, the poetry of winter... this was also a legend passed down in Japan.
Plains far from Axel.
Several days of heavy snow had blanketed the plains in a pure white expanse.
Above the snow floated countless snow-white, lightweight spherical bodies, each about the size of a palm. They appeared harmless, showing no signs of danger.
These were Snow Sprites.
These were their targets for subjugation.
Legend said that defeating just one would bring spring half a day earlier. Yet despite the Guild’s generous bounty of ξ100,000 per spirit, no Adventurers had taken up the quest to hunt them.
But appearances were deceiving — Snow Sprites were formidable fighters, Monsters that would actively attack people.
With Adam present, though, this posed no concern. They could handle even the Winter Shogun with ease.
"Do you really have to dress like that, Aqua?" Adam asked, eyeing her winter clothes, insect net, and the small bottles at her waist.
She looked like a child heading out to catch summer cicadas, her outfit completely childish.
"I’m going to use this to catch Snow Sprites!" Aqua declared, raising her insect net with a silly grin, "I’ll catch several and store them in boxes. Then when summer comes, I can have ice-cold bubble wine whenever I want! Aren’t I clever?"
You’re such a genius!
Adam was dumbfounded. This idiot — setting aside whether the Winter Shogun would even allow them to capture Snow Sprites, could such weak Monsters survive until summer?
Most importantly, since they could use〘Ice Magic〙, why go through all this trouble?!
"Haven’t I told you? I actually know Ice Magic."
Now it was Aqua’s turn to be dumbfounded.
She glanced from her equipment to Adam, then tossed aside the insect net and bottles.
"Also, Darkness, where’s your equipment?"
"It’s being repaired."
"You’re lying! I saw you wearing it this morning!"
Despite her earlier claims about being everyone’s shield, Darkness wasn’t wearing her armor.
She wasn’t backing down — this pervert simply wanted to experience the thrill of being beaten up by the Winter Shogun!
She wore only a black narrow skirt and shirt, the thin clothes seeming woefully inadequate against the cold. Yet she stood there breathing heavily, her face flushed.
"Even with your Skill, don’t be so reckless."
Adam ordered Darkness to stay back, draping his cloak over her casual clothes to shield her from the cold wind. As the off-tank, he would draw the aggro instead.
The pervert was clearly enjoying the bone-chilling feeling.
As they spoke, the Snow Sprites drifted leisurely toward them. Being Monsters with aggressive attributes, they couldn’t ignore intruders in their territory.
However, they proved too weak. Though agile, the Snow Sprites were no match for Kazuma’s moment to shine.
With〚Acceleration〛, he easily caught up to their erratic floating movements and cut them down cleanly with his short sword.
In ten minutes, they dispatched twenty Snow Sprites with ease.
At ξ100,000 each, that meant ξ2,000,000!
Though Adam was generous with their allowance, Kazuma wanted to build his personal savings — and have extra money for the Succubus Cafe later.
Just as he was celebrating, a violent surge of snow erupted from the distant hillside. A figure stepped heavily through the snow, radiating an overwhelming presence.
The figure wore heavy snow-white island-style armor paired with an equally white, finely woven haori. In its grip, a transparent sword blade gleamed with white frost. Its mere presence exuded an intense killing intent.
It was the Winter Shogun!
Both Megumin and Darkness were bubbling with excitement.
Wait. Megumin’s enthusiasm to test her Magic was understandable.
But why are you so excited, you pervert?! Don’t you dare try taking hits with your body!
He seized Darkness and held her tightly. Ignoring both her resistance and her distracting curves, he called to Beatrice beside him.
"Beatrice, can you restrain it?"
"I can." Beatrice gripped Adam’s left hand, absorbed some Mana, then aimed her right hand at the Winter Shogun.
In an instant, black pillars shot up from the snow, forming a cage around the Winter Shogun.
"Well done, Beatrice." Adam patted her head, then turned to Megumin, "Now it’s your turn, Grand Archmage."
"Leave it to me!" Megumin stepped forward eagerly, ready to unleash her most powerful magic.
A devastating spell that could only be cast once per day!
The magic tore through the cold, dry air with an earth-shattering boom, blasting a massive crater in the snow-white plain and exposing the deep gray scorched earth below.
With Megumin’s〚Magic Burn〛Skill enhancement, she had truly surpassed her previous limits.
The magic’s power was immense. Kazuma and the others were certain that no creature — not even the Winter Shogun — could withstand such devastating magic.
Yet the Winter Shogun endured. Though its armor had cracked so severely it would shatter at a touch, and a massive crater had been blown into its back, the creature clung stubbornly to life.
Until Adam delivered the final blow.
Of course, the Winter Shogun couldn’t truly perish. Being a mythical [Master of the Snow Sprites], born from people’s imagination, it would eventually return.
But for now, victory was theirs.
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