Chapter 98 Return

After opening the Treasure Chest of the Small Cell, the loot was distributed evenly although Amelie did most of the work, especially the fight against the Boss Monster, Immunosar's Cancer just because she got pissed off with the possibility of falling into a dream due to Cancer's Dream skill it used and being chase by such an abomination, not to hunt her, but rather with affection.

The items that each of them received were something that wasn't seen in the current Player Market, it's not because they belonged to another category of an item, but rather their looks were kind of peculiar.

"Aren't these items seemed to have a life?"

Amelie asked as she fidget something in her hand, seemingly forgetting what just happened earlier before Russell came back from returning the normal-looking gray rock to its initial location.

Each of them received a red pill, but it was beating like a heart for some reason.

"It seems like an ingredient for making potions."

Russell guessed as he inspected again the red pill which has the size of a tennis ball.

...

[Blood Clot of Immunosar]

Due to the overflow of uninvited guests, blood clots started to develop in Immunosar, causing the red beings to find a way to distribute it outside by shedding the parts where uninvited guests inhabit.

Rank: Rare

Classification: Consumable (Ingredient)

Effects:

1. If the ingredient was directly consumed, the consumer will have their overall stat, aside from Luck and Charm, increased by 10.

Can only be consumed once, otherwise, Mana Poisoning would undoubtedly spread.

2. By using it as an ingredient with other alchemical ingredients, its effects will be twice as effective.

3. Upon consuming, whether raw or brewed with others by a great alchemist, the consumer will receive a positive buff for 30 days, having their Stamina Regeneration increased by 10%. The buff duration applies and runs out whether or not the consumer was inside a Micro-Strayed Dungeon.

...

"It's definitely not easy to be strong."

Freya said, seemingly avoiding Amelie at the moment as she kept her distance. She also observed the red pill's details.

"I don't know how to express it, but we got lucky because of Oppa's Constellation... or else we'd train harder just to get to where we are now."

She realized that the effects of the Blood Clot of Immunosar weren't even worth comparing to a slice of the Fruit of Chaos that she consumed with the others, as well as the Chaos Buff that Russell granted to them giving them a hundred and fifty additional overall stat except for Luck and Charm.

"Sigh... what's next, Oppa?"

She sighed as she looked at her older brother who was standing still.

"Well, Amelie beat up the Boss Monster to death, not giving us the time to receive even minor injuries, but there's a way...

"It's to tell them the details of the behavior of the micro-monsters.

"If it was the known Strayed Dungeons, monsters wouldn't just stand idly while guarding something, instead they'd attack aimlessly, but during the Micro-Strayed Dungeon, the micro-monsters or the germs didn't go out of their line and just waited for us to approach them..."

Russell explained when Amery interjected.

"You mean we overcome the dungeon because of the behavior of monsters?"

Russell nodded, while Amelie and Freya also did the same as they understood.

"That's the best we can do for reasoning.

"And the next thing will be..."

After an unknown period of time, Russell exchanged ideas with the others as the night gradually passed by.

...

"Hey! Aren't they the ones missing for an entire week?"

"Oh! You're right, what happened to them? Their clothes seemed fine to me though?"

Students cast their curious gazes at the four students who were reported missing a week ago as they didn't attend their classes.

Russell, Freya, Amelie, and Amery were walking down the Obelisk Public Grounds with the President of the Disciplinary Committee, Azalea Vermillion leading the way to Vice-Chancellor's Office, Dexter Rainfall himself.

Along the way, with his Perception stat, Russell heard a ridiculous statement coming out from some of the students afar as his ears pricked up.

"Hey, isn't he the one who had sex with the former Secretary of the Student Council?"

"Yeah, I heard that, too. Victoria seemed to quit the Student Council because someone reported them getting caught in the act!"

"This man is lucky, that former Secretary is the icing on the cake, you know."

"Hahaha!"

Russell's veins on his forehead bulged with what he heard, seemingly wanting to cut their necks one by one with his nameless Scythe, but he quickly calmed himself down because he knew very well the forces at work behind such rumors.

'It's that f*cking Arthur Wolfson... Did he use Bailey Clarkson to spread such rumors?'

But one of the things he noticed was the words regarding Victoria Angelica Rasputin.

'What happened? She already left the Student Council?'

Russell clearly remembered in his unpublished novel that Victoria would only get the interest of the Constellation, 'One Who Peeks on Clock Movement', just a month or two before her second year ends. This would lead to Arthur's envy because he thought that it seemed so easy for her to be contracted with a Constellation while Arthur seemed like a puppet for doing a Constellation's bidding.

Russell's face was painted with confusion which didn't go unnoticed by Azalea's perception.

"I'll tell you about it later."

She seemed to understand Russell's concerns as they arrived at the building of Obelisk Faculty Building where faculty offices were located.

Standing in the white front door of the Vice-Chancellor's Office, Azalea knocked and slowly opened the door while Russell and the others were behind.

Creak-!

The white door creaked slowly as Azalea peeked inside in the gap, checking the people inside. There, a man and a woman were sitting on a couch seemingly feeling unrest, while the Vice-Chancellor was sitting on the seat in front of his desk.

"Come in."

The dignified voice of a man with silver hair and bluish eyes sounded in their ears.

Then after Azalea and the supposedly missing students, the man and the woman on the couch stood up and rushed quickly to the two students that entered.

"Freya! Russell!"

The two students' mother hugged them tightly into her embrace while their father stood behind his wife.

"Mom..."

Freya said softly, holding her tears back from worrying their parents while Russell seemed to feel the same, even though he has a 33-year-old mentality or more than that if he included his age in this world after he reincarnated.

It was the love of his parents that he didn't receive in his previous life.

After some time, their mother retracted her hands that were wrapped in her children. Her deep blue eyes looked at Freya and Russell as she asked about what happened, but at that moment, the Vice-Chancellor, offered everyone a seat before they recount what had transpired and encountered.

"Miss Melina, please calm down for now. It's the same for Mister Arche. Let's take a seat for now."

The mother, Melina Moon, and father, Arche Moon, of Russell and Freya, politely obeyed the Vice-Chancellor's words as he glanced at Azalea.

"Thank you, Azalea for your work."

Vice-Chancellor Dexter Rainfall said, indirectly saying that it was alright for Azalea to leave now.

"I'm sorry Vice-Chancellor, but I'm related to this matter."

Even Russell was confused, but he let Azalea say what she wanted.

'It's maybe because of Junain's Blanket.'

He thought inwardly as he didn't make any acceptable excuse for possessing such a costly artifact.

The Vice-Chancellor listened as he tapped the desk with his right index fingers.

"If you say so... Then, please, can you recount what happened?"

Russell, Freya, Amelie, and Amery looked at each other before Amelie initiated the conversation.

...

After an unknown period of time, Vice-Chancellor Dexter pinched his chin with his right index and right thumb as he listened and digest everything that the returning students said.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but the four of you snuck out of the Obelisk Academy because you got curious about the Strayed Dungeon that was detected, but couldn't be seen?

"After that, you used an artifact that Azalea provided because of the connection of the student named Russell with the President of the Disciplinary Committee..."

Vice-Chancellor Dexter looked at Azalea, silently waiting for confirmation to which she responded with a nod.

"Then, after surveying the area, the student named Amelie suddenly tripped while you all were walking together as a Party under the System. And she tripped because of the normal-looking gray rock which sucked the four of you and transferred into an E+ rank Strayed Dungeon which you cleared by yourselves?

"Then why'd you look so fine as if you didn't struggle at all?"

Vice-Chancellor discretely used his Status Appraisal Skill and checked the students' information, but he never knew that the students have the ability to edit their own Status Windows.

'One F rank, three E rank.'

He inwardly said, becoming doubtful of the students' words, then Amelie answered on their behalf, explaining the behavior of the monsters.

"Is that so..."

The Vice-Chancellor said while Amelie continued.

"Vice-Chancellor, we brought the bodies of the monsters and the rewards we've acquired after clearing it, would it suffice as evidence of what we struggled with just to come back to our beloved academy?"

Amelie said in tears, causing Russell, Freya, and Amery to almost blurt out laughing, destroying their excuses, but they managed to compose themselves by looking at the floor of the office instead.

"But Vice-Chancellor, we believe that the bodies of the monsters wouldn't be seen by our naked eyes because the System said that what we went through was called a Micro-Strayed Dungeon... Something like that... But maybe I'm wrong because the rewards we received clearly had their size bigger than the gray rock we told you about if combined...

"We also got the Monster Core..."

The Vice-Chancellor listened to Amelie before he suggested something.

"Alright, let's go to one of the monster-processing factories to appraise the Monster Core you've received."

...

"Are you angry, Mom??"

Freya asked softly as they walked to go to one of the Obelisk Monster Processing Factories.

"...No, I'm just glad you all came back, but I was deeply worried. Okay."

Meline Moon said with a smile of relief.

...

"Father..."

Russell said softly while looking at the man with deep black hair and deep blue eyes which he resembled.

"It's alright, but you worried us, Russell. I know we have the right to be mad at you two, but the moment we saw the two of you again, it was just washed away that the feelings of anger were replaced by gratefulness... Just... just be careful next time... and protect your sister. Always."

Russell nodded his head as he took to heart what Arche Moon, his father firmly said.

He clenched his fist because it was absolutely his fault for not remembering the time difference between the Nether Realm and Earth.

'I'm so f*cking stupid...'

Russell cursed inwardly as realized that it might become a problem in the future that if they needed to go to the Nether Realm, they need to make a reason that they'd be gone for a few days or weeks in Earth's time unless they told their parents about the changes in them, especially Freya.

'No, it's dangerous... especially in the future.'

...

After walking for some time under the gazes of most students which included the famous A-1 students such as Samantha, Elizabeth, and Rumia who were just going to their first class in the morning, they arrived at one of the monster processing factories.

"Good morning Vice-Chancellor and... guests. What help should I provide you today?"

The front lady wearing formal attire that seemed out of place in something like a monster processing factory spoke with a charming tone, greeting the guests.

"We need a Monster Core appraised, is anybody available?"

"Hmm. Monster Core Appraisal... Yes, there's personnel available already at this hour. Please go to Room 7 of O-UF3."

"Alright, thank you."

"It's my pleasure to serve."

The lady said with a smile before they proceeded in an elevator.

'Obelisk — Underground Floor 3'

Russell thought about the meaning of O-UF3 as they went inside the spacious silvery elevator.

...

In Room 7 of O-UF3 Monster Processing Factory

"Although it came from E+ rank Boss Monster, it's considered a High-Grade Core because of its origin and composition..."

The appraiser said while wearing a white apron stained with the blood of monsters.

"I've never seen anything like it... Typically this kind of Monster Core can only be acquired in A rank dungeons..."

The Vice-Chancellor looked at Amelie and the other students with a disbelieving expression, seemingly unable to process what these students encountered.