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ShangriLa Frontier Chapter 130

Translator: Kurehashi Aiko

Editor: ryunakama

Chapter 130: Dreams Drive Us Forward, No Matter What They Are

A faithful holy knight who fought Night Prowler Luukan in his previous life, got killed by it and then reincarnated by the Gods so that he could exact revenge on his killer, travelling all around the world with nothing but his curse marks to serve as his guide…… Only to finally find his arch-nemesis and with the help of his companions slay the beast with power that no one but him could wield.

That seems to be the current setting that is going on for me.

「Fufufu…… It seems that my legend is going to continue to grow with each passing day!」

Recently Emul was able to stay in his camouflage form for longer periods of time, so he started to shift from muffler to human form more and more. “Metamorphosis” sure is an amazing skill.

As for me, the curse marks weren’t making my life easy. …… They looked like really nasty tattoos and I think that their symbols grew even more since the last time, so combined with the bird mask and being half-naked I looked like someone who would be just perfect to stop at the city’s gates and be taken for questioning by the guards.

Of course, when you are accompanied by the player who is recognized as the “strongest” in the entire game and a ninja with a fox mask and wearing a white bunny cloak, there is just no way that any gatekeeper would like to stop you for questioning, much less deny you entry.

「How is your MP going? You good?」

「Fufufu, I’m growing some more every single day!」

「And how is Sickle-san going? You okay there, buddy? Hello? Earth to Sickle-san?」

「Please don’t talk to me right now, I’m currently doing my best to pass for a simple cloak……」

「Ah, that’s right!」

It was around five o’clock in the morning, and the number of players would only start to increase from here on out. Feeling the gazes of beings other than NPCs, I turn towards Rei.

「Thank you so much for all that you did for me today. Not only did you help me reach this place, but you also lent me a hand against Luukan……」

「No, the pleasure was all mine…… Umm, it was also rather enjoyable for me…… Yes. Also, if there was ever anything else that you’d like my help with…… I’ll be there for you.」

「Sure thing, I’ll definitely give you a call if something comes up.」

Players like Rei sure are in a league of their own when it comes to challenging fights, but overall I had a blast while we were playing together which made me look forward to that “next time”, whenever it might be.

We can save the sightseeing tour for later, for now we need to find the shops and replenish whatever we used up during our fight against Luukan and the capture of the dungeon itself.

While our group kept on strolling through the city, I was looking for some nice and dark back alley where we could disband our party and I could teleport to Rabbitz…… But it was then when I noticed that there was someone who’s been following us for a while now.

The appearance of that person was wrapped in a long black cloak with an intricate pattern on it, and there was something strange in the smile that was peeking from under the deep hood, as if it was beckoning me.

「What’s that?」

「S, something is clearly beckoning us from the inside of that dark alleyway over there…… It’s really suspicious…… Why are you looking at me like that, Sanraku-san?」

「Oh, you know…… I was just thinking that the bunny who invited me to Rabbitz and took me there was also pretty suspicious……」

「You say that now of all times!?」

While Emul continued to pound my shoulders with his anthropomorphized arms, I looked at the hooded figure who was still beckoning me to the dark alley, as if it was calling me specifically. Surprisingly enough, I didn’t feel any ill intent coming from that person. And the answer as to who it might be came from the side, where Rei still stood.

「This is…… Akanum, the Awakened Guru……? Ahh, because you’ve reached level ninety nine, that’s why……」

「Please explain?」

Rei looked at me with shining eyes and proceeded to explain what was going on in an excited voice.

「Akanum, the Awakened Guru is a special NPC that appears in front of players who managed to reach level ninety nine. It can grant you a special item called “Mysterium Arcanum” that you can use to unlock a special job.」

「Special job?」

Jobs and classes have tremendous influence on skills you can learn and magic spells you can remember. Wizards can memorize spells more easily and learn a vast variety of them, while dual wielding swordsmen can learn physical attacks. But judging from the description, this “Mysterium Arcanum” was something more than that.

First of all, the game’s system recognizes a distinction on main jobs and sub-jobs. While the main job is assigned to you at the start of the game, sub-jobs can be changed and adjusted as much as the player wants it.

Next, I do believe that the “Mysterium” part means that this item directly interferes with the player’s status, not the skills per se.

And lastly, the “Arcanum” resembles the “arcana” from the Tarot cards, which may mean that they are something really good and powerful.

「For example…… the “Mysterium” of “Chariot Arcana” can double the stats of AGI and STR, but at the cost of reducing STM by half……」

「The fuck……?」

It sounded like a brand new sports car made using cut-edge technology, but with overly high fuel consumption. However, there should also be some useful options to pick up there, for example could “Magician Arcana” allow spellcasters to cast even more powerful spells with less cost but at the expense of reducing STR they don’t really need?

Moreover, apparently the cards all illustrated the player, so even though they were pretty detailed it was actually impossible to guess what they did.

「By the way, what kind of card did you draw, Rei?」

「Mysterium of “The World Arcana”……」

It seems that this Arcana increased all stats of the player tremendously at the cost of skills becoming more difficult to cast. Wasn’t that basically like winning a jackpot in the lottery? Once again I was reminded just how amazing and powerful Rei really is.

「Would you like to try drawing an Arcana for yourself?」

I then walk towards the beckoning man without any hesitation. It was basically going to be the Gatcha lottery, and with others watching me I couldn’t help but to worry about the results I would receive…… then I was right in front of the Awakened Guru.

「Umm, good…… morning?」

「The one who has reached the pinnacle…… The time to awaken your hidden potential has come……」

「Ah, it looks like this NPC doesn’t engage in non-scripted talk.」

「Now, decide on the Mysterium that destiny holds in store for you…… Draw the card, if you dare.」

The man does not respond to that, which was a pretty rare occurrence in ShanFro, and then takes out a deck of cards from his pocket and throws them in the air. But the Tarot cards continue to flow in the air, not falling down at all. Furthermore, all of their faces were blank, so I couldn’t really see what Arcana they were supposed to be.

「Is this supposed to be randomized?」

「No, I was told that apparently there are some parameters that can affect what you draw.」

「In other words, no matter what card you pull, the results will always be the same.」

I grasp a card at random. The card depicts a half-naked young man walking alongside a bipedal bunny. There was also a number zero engraved on the card, and if I remember correctly, the card corresponding to that number in Tarot deck is supposed to be……

「A Fool?」

「Hoo…… Thou art not the one to stand still, always wandering and departing on journey after journey…… But, there is one thing I can say for certain.」

「Which is……?」

「The Fool Arcana will help you to rise again, but you can count only on yourself in face of adversity, so sickness and misfortune shall sting even fiercer at you……」

「Umm…… Do you happen to understand what that means?」

「The Fool arcana was…… It basically cuts the skills recast time by half, but for the duration of the skill you receive double damage. It also slightly enhances the effects of healing items…… I think.」

Umm, yeah.

Did I just hit a jackpot?