After the short mental memorial for Bayard, it was time to assess the actual loot. The dungeon had likely claimed the other adventurers already meaning that he would be able to easily find some goodies.
'Let's hope it makes up for my lost robe…' Ed wasn't expecting the knights to have anything mage-related but accessories like his anklet of the wind and the ring of fire should still be among the acquired loot.
Otherwise, the knight order that attacked him should have asked for a pay raise or better funding. It was downright embarrassing no?
'It can't be that a skeleton in a dungeon would have better rewards' Ed busied himself with idle thoughts as he walked past the hole in the blockade. He exited the corridor where the ground was still wet but no bodies could be found. That included that of his skeletons.
'That's rather mean' It shouldn't take his hard work without properly rewarding him right?
His thoughts garnered no response, Ed immediately got to sorting through the knights' armor and accessories.
[Molten WindStone Helmet]
[Molten WindStone Chestplate]
'This…' That was when Ed realized that lava was not the best thing to use for traps. While it would kill your enemies, it would also kill your loot!
'I guess it isn't all bad' He couldn't recognize the material WindStone but melting the armor and using it as a material for skeletons wouldn't be a bad idea.
[Burnt Runite Blade Gloves]
Mildly Increases Sword proficiency.
Ed chanced upon an interesting item. It was one that he was desperately in need of but unfortunately, the glove had signs of burning.
It was already quite miraculous that the glove functioned given that the knight that wore it likely tried to instinctively get rid of the lava with their hands. But… it was a pity they were still damaged.
Ed picked up the gloves and closely examined them. He wanted to fix them. His sword skills were in the negative but the glove could at least even things out for him. If he fixed it, he might be able to finally advance his sword skills.
'I should return to the orc plains soon' Most of his preliminary work for his skeleton legion was done. Once he taught all the skeletons to read and write it should be possible for him to return to the orc plains.
His skeleton legion would be mostly self-sufficient past that point. Assuming there were frequent attacks, which didn't seem to be the norm for the moment. It was only a matter of returning for gradual maintenance or collecting and assessing of loot.
'If I create some sort of workshop in Sanctuary 1I'd be able to level up my craftsperson skill and make improvements to the skeletons' He would lose nothing with this approach. The only uncertainty was if the dungeon would allow for constant switching between bodies.
'I wonder if there is a skill that could help with that…' Maybe one that would leave a mark on previously possessed bodies for easy transfer. It would simplify things for him without a doubt.
It was little more than wishful thinking for the moment. Ed finished sifting through the equipment and found little more of use.
[WindStone Boots]
Light yet sturdy boots.
WindStone seemed to boast of resilient yet light qualities. The boots could still be worn by himself alongside a robe. Even if it looked ridiculous.
'I guess my orc body would benefit more' It was only a question of whether or not the shoe would be the right size. Ed wasn't optimistic in that regard.
'Rollcall' It was time to move this time's heist. But before that Ed wanted to check which skeletons survived the ordeal.
He called over every skeleton in the vicinity and called the named ones in the form of broadcast. If they switched or ditched their armor Ed wouldn't be able to tell them apart without assessing them. It was therefore easier for them to come forward.
[Prairie (Injured)]
[Brutus (Anti-Skeleton)]
[Iron (Injured)]
[Scavenger (Anti-Skeleton)]
'Two are missing…' They were naturally Settler and Sole. Given that Ed never even noticed its body, Settler was most likely one of the skeletons that fell into the fissure near the beginning of the fight.
'I wonder if it's still alive…' The fissure wasn't tightly closed. At least Ed didn't get that impression. But seeing that Settler was completely outclassed it was very much possible that the earthen knight simply didn't break a sweat when crushing him.
Ed thus decided to give up on checking for Settler, it never treated him with as much respect as the others anyway. He did rollcall for the mages instead and it turned out that none of them had been part of the melted.
'I must question your loyalty under such circumstances…' If they had cared enough they would have surely jumped into the fire for him, right? The named skeletons were put to lead so their position was not the back of the line.
'Take the items, we are going back' Ed wasn't going to press that matter. He would much rather quickly settle everything he had to do at the crypt in a timely fashion to move back to the orc plains. He was starting to feel alone. Plus, who would be keen on playing with dead bodies all the time?
***
It was an isolated mountainous terrain. There were a father and son duo fishing by a creek with serene expressions. That was until the son broke the silence.
"Dad! I caught one!" Sammy, Samuel's only son, yelled enthusiastically.
"Great Job" Samuel replied with a smile. How could he not? Seeing his son's excitement was a heartwarming scene for sure.
"Cook it" Sammy said while holding the small fish by the line.
Samuel was made an awkward smile seeing how small the thing looked but agreed nonetheless.
"Watch this" But first, Samuel decided to put on a small performance.
The wind in the area which blew freely by the secluded creek started to converge near the small fish. Like magic, because it was, the fish flew off the hook and floated slowly above the air.
"Wow!" Needless to say, the small Samuel was impressed. His eyes were as wide as they could be. He didn't want to miss a single detail!
With a silly grin, Samuel motioned for Sammy to get up. Sammy's eyes sparkled with mischief and they both walked back towards a small cabin while the fish floated lifelessly near them.
They didn't enter however and it wasn't to enjoy the forested mountain terrain. The fish floated into the small cabin through a window.
"Aaie!" It was a shrill scream of surprise and fear. It was also a signal, a signal to break out into laughter.
"Hahaha!" Samuel laughed boisterously and his son did the same. Wife/Mother was not amused, however. She exited the small cabin fuming.
"What?" Samuel feigned ignorance. Her steady glare however made him break into a cold sweat.
"Sammy, did you catch that fish?" She asked sweetly.
"Y-Yes!" Sammy earnestly replied.
"I see. To commemorate, your dad will only eat that for dinner, is that alright?" She continued asking calmly.
"Ye-yes?" Sammy was confused but ultimately agreed.
Samuel wanted to voice a complaint but decided to keep his mouth shut. He was asking for it.
"I just wanted to form some precious memories…" He muttered weakly.
The main reason for that yearning was that he rarely received a vacation. Most importantly, his main goal in entering the mountains this time was training. He, therefore, rented a cabin at the bottom of his training mountain.
The mountain was located just outside the Galeburst mountain range and was known for its windy atmosphere. The nearby creek and river also made it convenient to casually train his water elements.
So far, he had made tremendous progress. Controlling the elements wasn't that straightforward. It was actually making use of the mana already in the air to directly command the surroundings.
While it got the same end results it was certainly different in concept. The main reason why it was important to make that distinction was that the practice would boil down to improving one's control over mana rather than futilely trying to make the elements move with one's mind.
Once he got a better understanding of the principle, Samuel felt it was almost too simple. Of course, he then found it went deeper. It was also about simplifying one's commands and thoughts. To make them concise enough to be held by a single wisp of mana.
Only after that was achieved would it seem as if the earth heeded by a person's thoughts and actions. It was exhausting. He needed breaks.
It was like straining one's eyes to write in an extremely small font. Yet making it understandable enough when put under a microscope. The pen would need to be extremely fine, that was why one's manipulation needed to be pushed to the extreme, and the mind needed to make sure it was legible.
"No complaints…?" His wife murmured in surprise due to Samuel's lack of response. If that wasn't enough she planned to make him sleep on the couch! It was too bad Samuel hadn't responded.
"I heard that..." Samuel said flabbergasted. He wasn't the type to complain, was he?
The family of three then entered the small cabin. It just so happened that Samuel's wife had been cooking at the time they scared her. Of course, Samuel could only watch and wait for her to cook a new dish.