CASE 3. The Case of Natalia, a Black Rank Adventurer (1)
The third person was Natalia, a Black-ranker.
She was also 16 years old like me and recently came to Vardmoi from another town.
She has been active solo for over a year, and despite being a Black Rank adventurer, she seemed to be of a considerable skill.
However, she was not good at waking up early, and as a result, she hasn’t advanced to the Green Rank.
That sounds tough.
Also, she mentioned knowing me from visiting the shop a few times.
Although she didn’t buy clothes, she purchased underwear and armor.
I remember the armor; it was a familiar one.
In Natalia’s case, she has a compatibility with bird-type monsters, but her affinity with common monsters isn’t great.
That means she needs to find a rare bird-type monster, but I have no idea where to start looking.
The members of the Wildcat Claws are not originally from this city, so they also have no idea about rare monsters.
Jenna and Tanya don’t know about rare bird-type monsters, and of course, Natalia wouldn’t either.
So, I decided to inquire at the Adventurers’ Guild.
I consulted with Melanie at the reception, and she told me that this season, there was a bird-type monsters called “Phantasm Wing” that migrate to a lake beyond the mountains that encircle Vardmoi.
“Phantasm Wing, you say? What kind of bird are they?”
“They are large birds, big enough for a person to ride, covered in pure white feathers. They live in flocks and are generally calm. However, being monsters, they eat other monsters in the vicinity as their prey.”
Hmm, sounds like a swan, but it’s still a monster.
Let’s ask for more details.
“As a monster to be subjugated, even individually, it’s an upper-ranked Blue-rank monster, quite powerful. It attacks by releasing feathers, using wind magic, and even performs dive attacks from above. The most dangerous part is its illusionary attack.”
“Illusionary attack?”
“While spreading its wings and intimidating, it simultaneously shows an illusion directly in front of it. When that happens, you may not know where the actual monster is. In some cases, you could be beheaded while still under the illusion.”
“I see, it sounds quite strong.”
“It is. Because its materials are traded at high prices, there are dozens of cases every year, where confident adventurers challenge them and end up losing.”
Hmm, they really are formidable monsters, then.
However, the illusion can be dispelled by experiencing a strong stimulus.
So, if you notice the illusion, you can immediately prick yourself with a needle to feel pain, and the illusion will disappear.
We also need to prepare…
Wait, can’t my enchantments prevent the illusionary attack?
I took a day to prepare and check if there’s a suitable enchantment.
It turns out that the enchantment called “Sensory Protection” can indeed prevent illusions.
However, this enchantment seemed to be quite high-level, and even when applied to Spider Silk, it tore more easily than regular fabric.
As a last resort, I used Mana Spider Silk, but it still tore unless it was of a considerable length.
It’s getting chilly anyway, so I decided to wrap it around my neck like a scarf.
The Mana Spider Silk, being sturdy fabric, could serve as makeshift armor, preventing attacks on my neck from feathers or wind magic.
Considering the price, it’s a bit much, but oh well.