Ch 69 -- Mithril Lizard
We left the city early the next morning, running toward Pasquale Mountain. Of course Fer is doing all the running, Iâm simply riding on his back and Sui is sleeping comfortably in her new bag.
Fer gobbled up some Orc General steaks for breakfast before we set off. We had a long day ahead of us and I didnât want him getting hungry and crabby half-way though. Sui seemed to be quite happy in her bag.
"Is that where that reptileâs supposed to be?" Ferâs tone of voice was dismissive of his intended prey. Hey, itâs supposed to be a Class A monster! A tall peak that I took to be Pasquale Mountain appeared on the horizon.
"If the Guild Masterâs directions were correct, thatâs Pasquale Mountain. Do you know where the Metal Lizard is likely to be, Fer?"
"Wait a moment..." Fer said and after a second or two he accelerated towards where he thought the Metal Lizard would be. When I asked him he told me he seems to know the approximate location of any monster nearby. Itâs something like a feeling of recognition rather than a specific location skill, apparently.
"Weâre just about there." Saying that Fer slowed down to a halt.
"Itâs over there." I followed Ferâs gaze. There was a cave under the shade of a tree.
"Is that where the Metal Lizard is living?" I asked. I donât like caves for good reason. I blame Ferâs magic training regime.
"Probably." Fer answered.
"So how are we going to do this?" I asked apprehensively.
"Iâll think about it later." Fer answered. That wasnât the answer I wanted to hear... Fer charged into the cave with me still on his back.
"W- W- W- W- wait a minute, ahhh-" At least let me off first, you big idiot.
As we ran into the pitch-dark cavern we immediately encountered the Metal Lizard. There was a wide opening just past the cave entrance. Over by the far wall the Metal Lizard was eating something with a loud crunching sound. It looked... huh?
"Hey, whatâs up with that Lizard? Somehow its body is glowing...."
"So what. Iâll defeat that reptile with one hit and turn it into money." Fer was indifferent to the unusual sight.
Donât just say "So what", you... To be on the safe side I used Appraisal on the glowing monster and it registered as "Mithril Lizard". ...Mithril? Thatâs the precious metal that appears in fantasy novels?
"Fer, I just used Appraisal on that Metal Lizard and itâs actually a Mithril Lizard." I warned him.
"If thatâs the case thereâs a vein of mithril ore in here somewhere. That reptile has been eating mithril ore and itâs mutated." Fer explained.
So thereâs a vein of mithril ore here... thatâs an important discovery, isnât it? Well, itâs not something that involves me really, but if thereâs some mithril ore lying about Iâll pick some up. I like the idea of having a mithril sword, or if thatâs not possible maybe a knife. Mithril sword, mithril knife, both? hmmm... Having a knife and a sword made of such a rare metal is the stuff of fantasy stories. Mithril is especially romantic. I decided that I really wanted them.
"Mithril means that magic is not very effective." Fer explained.
Anything made from mithril is light and hard and it protects well against magical attacks by diffusing the energy. From Ferâs experience he told me that magic was reduced to less than half of its usual effectiveness. Did that mean Ferâs magic wasnât going to be strong enough to defeat the Mithril Lizard?
Fer shook his head. "All that means is that Iâll have to use twice as much magic as normal to deal with that reptile properly." Saying that, the cavern resounded with a loud crash as Fer unleashed his magic attack. Kaboom! Rumble rumble rumble... A single flash of lightning hit the Mithril Lizard. I stared open-mouthed at the sight. Sui, surprised by the loud sound poked her head out of her bag.
"Hey Fer, what did you just do?"
"I fired strong lightning magic at that reptile." Strong? Isnât that a bit excessive? No, thinking about it using that much magic on a Mithril Lizard was probably the right thing to do. The lightning magic was incredibly loud though.
"OK, thatâs done. Collect it quickly and you can turn it in at the Guild for cash."
"Are you sure itâs totally dead?" It was only one hit after all...
"Oh, that reptile was killed by my magic sure enough."
So the Mithril Lizard is standing there eating mithril ore, it doesnât even notice weâre here and then, kaboom! and itâs dead in an instant... It seems kinda pathetic, a real let-down. I am sorry, Mithril Lizard. Thatâs what I was thinking as I put the Mithril Lizard in my Item Box.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Around where the Mithril Lizard was feeding there were lumps of ore glowing with a pale light. That would be mithril ore, I guessed.
"Fer, hang on a minute, I want to get some of this mithril ore."
"Nuuu, hurry up." Fer was impatient to get going now the job was finished.
"Aruji-, do you want this glowing stone? Sui will help too."
"Thanks, Sui. Bring the glowing stones over to me then."
"I understand-" Sui jumped out of the bag and started gathering mithril ore. I put some nearby mithril ore in my Item Box. Hmmm, I wonder if this is enough.
"I gathered some for you-" Sui chimed in.
"Wow, you sure collected a lot." I praised Sui. She had gathered enough mithril ore to fill the back of a small truck. I felt that maybe that was too much but Sui had worked hard so I couldnât refuse it. I put it in my Item Box and decided to worry about it later. I had easily enough ore now to make a mithril sword and a mithril knife now, maybe I could get a suit of mithril armour made? But if itâs armour made from solid metal wouldnât it hinder my movement? Thinking about it though maybe the Mithril Lizardâs skin would be just as strong as mithril metal?
"Hey, Fer, would a Mithril Lizardâs skin be as strong as mithril metal?" I asked.
Fer thought for a moment."Because that reptileâs skin would take on the same characteristics as the ore it ate, yeah it probably will be as strong."
"Oh? Rather than making mithril armour maybe I should get armour made with Mithril Lizard skin instead since itâll be a lot more flexible."
"Hmm? Are you planning to get some armour?"
"Well, I thought that it would be better to have some kind of armour."
"You donât need armour, youâve got my magic Barrier." Fer grumped. "Whether itâs mithril metal armour or reptile-skin armour, theyâre nothing compared to my Barrier. Itâs pointless for you to have something like that."
Well, heâs got a point. Ferâs magical Barrier has totally prevented me from being injured any time Iâve been attacked. So what should I do with all this mithril ore? Even if I just hang on to it for the time being, would I be able to sell it if I wanted to?
"Hey, have you finished collecting that mithril ore? Letâs get out of here and eat." Fer was getting really impatient now.
Yeah yeah Mister Glutton. We left the cave and I started preparing dinner.