Chapter 371 - 321: Instant Flash Ball

Chapter 371: Chapter 321: Instant Flash Ball

Returning to the Heart of the Emerald Residence, Zelir was about to head straight upstairs.

But Hera, the girl at the front desk, took the initiative to greet him.

"Ah, Mr. Zelir... you’re back."

She leaned forward, waving, her smile as sweet as ever.

"You just got back from exploring the ruins, right? There’s actually something I wanted to talk to you about..."

For some reason, Hera seemed a little embarrassed.

Zelir was rather surprised she remembered his name.

They had never really spoken before.

"What is it?"

Zelir could almost feel a question mark appearing over his head.

"Um... it’s just... the number of guests has been increasing recently."

Hera’s fingers fidgeted nervously as she lowered her gaze, her eyes darting about.

"So, once your prepaid period ends, the room rates at the Heart of the Emerald Residence will probably be going up a little..."

"You prepaid for five days, and tomorrow is the last one... so the new rate will apply after that."

Because of the sudden, steep price hike, Hera had been harshly berated by quite a few guests while explaining it.

Some had even resorted to insults.

That’s why she seemed so nervous and ill at ease.

Hera sighed to herself, not for the first time.

’Sigh, it’s not even my fault... The owner is the one who raised the prices, so why yell at me...’

’It’s not like I’m getting a cut of the extra money...’

Zelir glanced around the lobby.

It was true; the place was even more crowded...

It seemed news of the ruins was still spreading, drawing a continuous stream of new people to Sengu Town.

It wasn’t just Adventurers; many other opportunists had scented a business opportunity and flocked to the town.

"Alright."

Zelir was understanding. "How much is it going up?"

He’d made a fortune in the ruins anyway, so a little extra wasn’t going to break the bank.

Seeing that Zelir didn’t complain, Hera breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said,

"The... the daily rate will increase by ten Silver Coins from the original price."

It used to be thirty Silver Coins, so now it’s forty.

"Fine."

Without missing a beat, Zelir pulled four Gold Coins from his Storage Pouch and placed them on the counter. "Then I’ll extend for another ten days."

He couldn’t be bothered to find another place. A little more expensive was fine.

Besides, he was very satisfied with the ambiance and service at the Heart of the Emerald Residence, and this little bit of money was nothing to him.

"Great!"

Hera’s eyes lit up at Zelir’s easy-going attitude.

She deftly handled the paperwork for his extension.

Then, like a little squirrel sharing a secret, Hera glanced around before leaning close to Zelir’s ear and lowering her voice.

"Um... to make it up to you, I can also give you complimentary breakfast... But please, don’t mention this to anyone else..."

’Complimentary breakfast, huh...’

Seeing Hera’s adorable expression, Zelir’s mood brightened considerably.

"Thank you."

He took a few more Silver Coins from his Storage Pouch and placed them on the counter.

"Huh? The breakfast is free, you don’t have to pay." Seeing this, Hera quickly waved her hands in refusal.

"It’s a tip, for your excellent service," Zelir said with a faint smile.

For a moment, Hera was at a loss, her cheeks flushing slightly red.

"Then... then thank you so much."

She gave a slight bow, not quite daring to look up at Zelir.

"En... enjoy your stay!"

He went upstairs and returned to his familiar room.

After a wonderful hot bath, Zelir sank into the soft, large bed.

Surrounded by the scent of wood and a peaceful atmosphere, he quickly drifted off to sleep.

...

「The next day.」

「Early morning.」

Zelir slowly stirred awake.

A night of refreshing sleep.

The feeling of being in a town was just different.

The sense of security that came from being enveloped in civilization and order was something no wilderness camp could ever match.

"KNOCK, KNOCK..."

A timely knock came from the door, followed by an attendant’s voice.

"Mr. Zelir, your breakfast is ready. I’ve left it outside your door."

"Alright," Zelir yawned.

He pushed open the window, and the fresh air, fragrant with grass and trees, flooded the room.

Zelir placed the tray on the windowsill and began to enjoy his breakfast.

Warm milk, buttered bread, two perfectly fried, thin meat patties, and an egg.

It was a very nice breakfast.

Zelir stacked everything together to make a sandwich. Taking a large bite, he mulled over his plans for the day.

On his data panel, the Technique Celestial Calculation showed that [Instant Flash Ball] had been fully analyzed.

Thanks to the unique flow of time in the ruins, this Level Three Multi-layered Technique Structure Magic had become usable in less than three days.

’Instant Flash Ball...’

Zelir recalled the scene of Adrian using this spell.

It didn’t have the usual trajectory of a magic projectile.

Instead, the moment it finished charging, it detonated directly at the target’s location!

Precise and swift, it gave the enemy no time to react.

Its efficiency and destructive power far surpassed the Aurora Energy Beam!

It was an extremely useful offensive spell.

’If I can master it, my ability to take down tough targets will undoubtedly soar.’

’Thinking about it, I really am lacking in offensive power.’

Right now, Zelir had only mastered three Level Five Magic spells.

Ring of Resistance, Blazing Flame Shield, and Purification Aura.

Without exception, they were all defensive or support-oriented; he didn’t have a single offensive spell among them.

His strongest single-target offensive spell, the Aurora Energy Beam, had been swiped for free from the One-Eyed Giant.

Back at the Mage’s Guild in Black Stone Town, Zelir had seen the prices for Level Five Magic Scrolls.

They started at a base price of three hundred Gold Coins.

As for the truly useful Level Five Magic, those easily went for five or six hundred Gold Coins—far more than he could afford at the time...

On a side note, Star Punishment had also finished its analysis.

But Zelir couldn’t even be bothered to try casting that spell.

It was a Level Seven Arcane Magic; he might not be able to cast it even after advancing to a Middle Level Mage.

It would be a real disaster if the spell backfired.

He stuffed the last of his egg and meat patty sandwich into his mouth and chewed vigorously, his eyes burning with determination.

’Alright, I’ll master Instant Flash Ball today!’

...

「The outskirts of Sengu Town.」

A green meadow stretched out before him.

After a period of Shallow Meditation, Zelir brought his condition to its peak.

Before him stood a huge granite boulder, over a meter tall.

It seemed that Adventurers who trained in the wilderness were fond of using rocks as target practice.

Zelir had come across many large, damaged boulders.

They were covered in a dense web of sword slashes or bore the marks of bombardment by Combat Energy Arrows.

He’d had a hard time finding a rock as pristine as this one.

’Let’s give it a try...’

Raising the Night Peace Magic Wand, Zelir began to sketch the Technique Structure for Instant Flash Ball in his mind.

The reason Instant Flash Ball had to be constructed with multi-layered Rune Circuits was due to one of its most important properties.

An extremely high burst of power in a very short time!

To achieve this, a second layer of the Technique Structure had to be inserted at the critical node where Magic Power converged.

This allowed the Magic Power from both layers of the Technique Structure to erupt at the very same instant.

That was the secret.

The Spring Seed spun faster, and Magic Power surged.

A brilliant white light began to blossom at the tip of the Night Peace Staff.

Guided by Zelir’s will, the rushing Magic Power was tamed, sketching the Technique Structure along a complex trajectory.

He carefully controlled the flow of Magic Power, ensuring not a single bit overflowed or fell short.

However, during this process, Zelir still felt a hint of resistance.

Compared to his 196 points of Spirit, his 147 points of Intelligence was clearly a weak link.

For example, Spirit was a fiery steed, and Intelligence was the rider.

If the steed was too wild and the rider’s skill wasn’t up to par, the consequences were easy to imagine.

When one’s Magic Power Strength was too high and their Magic Manipulation Level couldn’t keep up... to a certain extent, it could even affect Casting efficiency.

Fortunately, Zelir hadn’t reached that extreme, though he did feel it was a bit of a struggle.

The sketching of the Technique Structure progressed steadily, without a single error.

Soon, he reached the branching point where the second set of Rune Circuits was to be inserted.

This was the point that most tested one’s Magic Manipulation Level.