The hole left behind after the giant tree fell was pitch black and bottomless.
Kagashi walked to the edge of the pit and glanced down.
In the darkness, something seemed to be reflecting light.
There was a metallic luster and the grayish-white outlines of stones.
He narrowed his eyes and activated the Eye of Truth.
His vision pierced through the darkness.
The pit was very deep, about ten meters.
Layers of gray stones were stacked together, with dark red Iron Ore embedded in the crevices like metallic veins.
And at the very bottom of the pit, there was a square object.
It was a chest, mostly covered by stones.
It was made of Wood, and its surface shimmered with a dark golden luster.
[Name: Novice Treasure Chest]
[Quality: Excellent]
[Description: A special treasure chest hidden in the novice area, containing rare resources.]
Kagashi’s eyes lit up.
“There are stones and Iron Ore down there,” he said, turning back to the four girls.
“And a treasure chest.”
“A treasure chest?”
Furina leaned over, took a look down, and her face instantly turned pale.
“It’s so deep?
How do we get down?”
Kagashi looked around, searching for a place to climb.
The walls of the pit were not smooth; there were many protruding tree roots and rocks, acting like natural steps.
“Kagashi said, ‘Just climb down.
There are places to grip on the walls.'”
“Climb down?”
Misaka Mikoto poked her head out to take a look and frowned.
“It’s over ten meters high; falling down is no joke.”
“I’ll go first, you guys wait for me up here.”
As Kagashi spoke, he had already grabbed a thick tree root on the wall and stepped onto a protruding rock.
“Going down alone again?” Furina glared at him.
Kagashi looked back at her and smiled.
“Then, shall we go down together?”
Furina looked at the bottomless pit, swallowed hard, but still nodded.
“Let’s go down together.”
The others also nodded.
Kagashi said, “Hahaha, actually there’s no need for everyone to go down.”
“We need someone on guard.”
He looked at Yoshino and Misaka Mikoto.
“Yoshino, Mikoto, you two stay up here on guard.
There might be danger around the pit, so we need people to watch over it.”
Yoshino was stunned for a moment, then nodded vigorously: “I-I’ll keep a good watch!”
Misaka Mikoto frowned, seemingly wanting to say she wanted to go down too, but after a glance at Yoshino, she still nodded.
Kagashi was the first to climb down.
The pit walls were easier to climb than imagined; there were many protruding rocks and roots, providing places for hands to grab and feet to step.
He moved quickly and reached the bottom of the pit after a few minutes.
“Come on down!
Be careful, keep a firm grip!” he shouted up.
Roxy was the second.
She climbed down calmly, every step steady, as if she were descending a regular flight of stairs.
One hand gripped the rock while the other held a flame for light; her movements were so elegant it didn’t look like she was climbing into a pit.
Furina was the third.
Her fingers gripped the rough walls, grinding painfully, but she bit her lip and didn’t make a sound.
The moment her feet touched solid ground, her legs went weak, and she almost fell.
Kagashi was quick and supported her.
“Are you okay?”
“I-I’m fine!”
Furina stood steady, her face turning even redder, whether from exhaustion or something else. New chapters come out on g.com first.
“My legs are just a bit weak.”
“It’s normal, climbing this kind of place for the first time.”
Kagashi let go of her and looked around the bottom of the pit.
“Let’s get to work.”
The bottom of the pit was much wider than the top, with a space of about dozens of square meters.
The walls were exposed with a large amount of ore—gray stones and dark red Iron Ore stacked in layers, like a cross-section in a geological museum.
“Start digging.”
[Stone x1, stored in system inventory.]
The three of them divided the work, and the sound of clinking and clanking echoed in the pit.
They spent quite some time digging.
They finally gathered 100 stones.
However, they were still 35 pieces short of Iron Ore.
They also finally finished clearing away the stones pressing on the chest.
Kagashi took a deep breath and reached out to lift the lid of the chest.
Inside the chest was a glass test tube.
The test tube contained a pale blue liquid that glowed slightly, as if something living was flowing inside.
[Physical Reinforcement Potion]
[Effect: Permanently improves the user’s physical attributes—strength, speed, endurance, and recovery are all enhanced.]
[Side Effect: There will be a physical reaction after consumption; the duration varies from person to person.]
[Note: Exclusive reward from the Novice Treasure Chest; each person can only consume it once.]
“Physical Reinforcement Potion,” Kagashi read aloud.
Furina and Roxy leaned in, their eyes sparkling as they looked at the glowing test tube.
“Permanently improves physical attributes?” Furina’s voice rose half a pitch.
“Strength, speed, endurance, recovery—all of them enhanced.”
Roxy said softly, “This is too precious.”
“You drink it,” Furina said to Kagashi, her tone leaving no room for doubt.
“Yes, you drink it,” Roxy also nodded.
“Among us, you are the strongest.
If you become even stronger, it will benefit the entire team.”
The two of them spoke in unison, but their meaning was unified: you drink this potion.
Looking at them, a wave of warmth surged in Kagashi’s heart.
“Alright.” He nodded and unscrewed the cap of the test tube.
The pale blue liquid emitted a faint fragrance, like the smell of a forest after rain.
He tilted his head back and poured the entire tube of potion into his mouth.
The moment the liquid entered his throat, it was cold.
It was like drinking a mouthful of ice water; it slid down his throat, and the chill spread to his chest.
Then…
Heat.
Starting from his stomach, a scorching sensation suddenly erupted, like a ball of fire burning inside his body.
“Hiss!” Kagashi gasped, his expression instantly contorting.
“What’s wrong?” Furina asked nervously.
“Hot, so hot.” Kagashi gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.
The heat grew stronger, turning from a burn into intense pain.
“Ah—!!!” Kagashi couldn’t help but roar out loud.
He didn’t expect the side effect to be this!
“Kagashi!” Furina rushed forward, wanting to support him.
“Don’t touch him!” Roxy grabbed Furina.
“The note said there would be a strong physical reaction.
We don’t know if touching him will cause problems; let’s observe first.”
Kagashi’s skin began to turn red, as if fire was burning beneath his skin.
Above the pit.
“There’s a sound below!” Yoshino suddenly stood up, her small face pale.
Misaka Mikoto heard it too.
Kagashi’s roar drifted up from the pit; though a bit muffled, the pain in the voice was clear.
“Brother Kagashi!” Tears instantly welled up in Yoshino’s eyes.
Misaka Mikoto bit her lip, forcing herself to stay calm.
“They are down there; we still need to guard the top.” Her voice was trembling, but she tried her best to keep it steady.
“Furina and Roxy are both down there.
“Trust them.” Misaka Mikoto placed her hand on Yoshino’s shoulder and squeezed gently.
“What we can do is guard the top and not let anything get close.”
Yoshino wiped her tears and nodded vigorously.
But her small hands kept trembling, and her eyes were fixed on the mouth of the pit, not daring to look away for even a second.
Inside the cavern at the bottom of the pit.
The intense pain lasted for about ten minutes.
The heat began to subside.
It didn’t fade slowly but weakened in waves, like a receding tide.
Kagashi panted heavily, his hands propped on his knees, his whole body still trembling slightly.
“Are you okay?” Furina asked nervously.
“I’m okay.” Kagashi’s voice was a bit raspy, but much better than before.
“Much better than just now.”
He stood up straight and moved his limbs.
The flush on his skin was rapidly fading, and his breathing gradually stabilized.
After a few more minutes, he had completely returned to normal.
“You’re better?” Roxy asked, somewhat unable to believe it.
“I’m better.” Kagashi clenched his fists, his joints making a “crack-crack” sound.
He felt an unprecedented power surging through his body.
It wasn’t external power brought by the Ox Talisman, but his own power bursting forth from his bones, muscles, and blood.
He walked to the cave wall, reached out to touch the Iron Ore embedded in the stone crevices, and then gave it a light snap.
“Crack!”
A piece of Iron Ore the size of a fist was snapped off by him with his bare hands.
Before, he would have had to smash it with a stone for a long time just to get one piece off.
[Iron Ore x1, stored in system inventory.]
Furina and Roxy looked at each other, both seeing the shock in each other’s eyes.
“This is the effect of the Physical Reinforcement?” Furina murmured.
“It’s not just strength.”
Kagashi moved his shoulders.
“Speed, endurance, recovery—they should all have improved.
As for exactly how much, I’ll have to test it slowly.”
“We’re still 35 pieces of Iron Ore short,” Roxy reminded him.
Kagashi nodded, walked to the cave wall, and combining the power of the Ox Talisman with his own reinforced strength, he delivered a heavy punch to the wall.
“Crash!”
A large section of ore fell from the cave wall, his efficiency doubling compared to before.
Furina and Roxy also joined in, and the three of them dug together.
The clinking and clanking sounds rang out densely in the cavern.
Fifteen minutes later.
[Iron Ore x35, stored in system inventory.]
“We’ve got it all!” Furina shouted excitedly.
Stones: 100.
Iron Ore: 100.
Wood: 130.
Level 1 Train Blueprint: 1.
Everything was gathered.
“Let’s go!” Kagashi put the axe into his system inventory and turned to walk towards the passage.
The three of them passed through the narrow passage and returned to the bottom of the pit.
Above the pit.
Yoshino squatted at the edge of the pit, her small hands tightly clutching her skirt, her eyes staring unblinkingly at the opening.
Misaka Mikoto stood beside her, one hand gripping a steel pipe and the other resting on Yoshino’s shoulder.
Suddenly, Misaka Mikoto raised her head and looked into the distance.
“What’s wrong?” Yoshino noticed her strange behavior.
Misaka Mikoto didn’t answer, narrowing her eyes to stare into the distance.
In the direction of the horizon, a grayish-white mass was slowly moving.
It wasn’t clouds, and it wasn’t mist.
It was fog!
Dense fog.
It was spreading from afar at an extremely fast speed, like a gray wall swallowing everything in its path.
“Fog?” Misaka Mikoto frowned.
“Fog at this time?”