Free Web NovelThe altar holding the Book of Wishes split apart down the middle.
Ian reached inside and pulled out a dark crimson bead.
The third Life Bead.
Dropping heavily onto the floor, Ian rolled the bead around in his palm. After burning through so much MP, he needed time to recover naturally. Using a potion now felt wasteful.
As his mana slowly regenerated, he infused the bead with <Purification>.
Each time his hand brushed its surface, a sacred breeze swept through the area, cooling the sweat-soaked bodies of his companions. Little by little, the bead regained its original transparent color before finally cracking with a faint snap.
Ian casually tossed the now useless, stone-like bead aside.
“So that’s how you kill a Demon King. Fascinating.”
The elf rested his chin in his hand as he spoke.
‘That’s putting it lightly...’
There was a world of difference between purifying a Life Bead and killing a Demon King.
‘Wait... did I ever actually tell him what we’re traveling around for?’
Ian rubbed the back of his neck, unable to remember. Judging by the circumstances, Keith must have explained something on his own.
“It’s not some grand mission.”
“Oh?”
“The world’s overflowing with corrupted mana. I just figured it’d be nice to clean things up a little.”
Ian repeated the same excuse he had once given Keith.
It wasn’t entirely accurate, but close enough.
“That’s genuinely moving.”
The elf’s eyes sparkled.
Beside him, Keith nodded solemnly.
Ding!
[Dorian(?) now sees you as a hero.]
[Keith firmly believes you are an Agent of God.]
Ding!
[Dorian(?)’s Favorability: 86%]
‘Why does it keep increasing?’
“Then how about risking your life with me for the sake of this noble cause?” Ian asked dryly. “You’ll feel fulfilled even if you die.”
“Hm... tempting.”
The elf considered it, but didn’t take the bait.
At this point, Ian began to suspect this character simply couldn’t be recruited as a follower at all.
Shouldn’t someone with this much favorability already be pledging loyalty?
Meanwhile, the Book of Wishes still hovered above the altar.
Ian rose to his feet.
It was time to make a truly grand wish.
The scope of the wish was limited to Oasis Village, but still—
“...?”
Both of his companions looked puzzled.
“You’re actually going to use it?”
“Well, it sounds impressive, but maybe we should just sell it instead,” the elf suggested. “We can split the profits evenly. N shares.”
Keith immediately turned toward him.
“You contributed nothing toward obtaining this item. Remember the teaching against coveting what belongs to others.”
“I’m the one who’d be selling it!”
“You overestimate your own value.” Keith narrowed his eyes slightly. “Did you know pride is one of the seven deadly sins?”
“......”
The elf covered his mouth, then whispered quietly to Ian.
“Hey... does your second regular customer dislike me?”
“You’re only realizing that now?”
“...!”
Being of another race practically guaranteed permanent hostility in Keith’s eyes.
‘Still, this is surprisingly restrained.’
Ian found himself oddly impressed.
Once Keith acknowledged someone as an ally, he apparently made an effort not to show open hostility.
Compared to the murderous pressure Ian himself had experienced firsthand, this was practically polite.
“We can’t sell the book,” Ian explained.
“Why not?”
“Appraise it.”
As expected of a merchant, the elf had leveled his skill considerably. A spirit master with merchant abilities really was the definition of a hybrid build.
If Ian ever managed to recruit him, he fully intended to reset his skill tree.
Fortunately, the game had reset items for exactly that purpose.
The moment the elf activated his appraisal skill, the Book of Wishes glowed red and its description changed.
Ding!
[Book of Wishes (S)]
Grants the wish of the one who successfully conquers the tower.
However, the scope of the wish is limited to ‘Oasis Village’.
The wisher must pay a corresponding price. If the payment is insufficient, all life within the affected area will share the cost.
“......”
As the hidden condition was revealed, silence fell over the group.
“Is this thing cursed?!”
“I understand. We should purify it and burn it.”
“No, what are you saying?! We’re obviously using it!”
‘Who throws away an S-rank item?!’
Ian was genuinely appalled.
Even if it was cursed, there had to be a way to exploit it properly.
It was S-rank.
And more importantly—
This wasn’t even a cursed item.
It was the reward tied to the Desert Tower questline. If the correct wish was made, the player would naturally receive compensation afterward.
The right answer had already been decided from the beginning.
Before either of them could stop him, Ian placed his hand on the Book of Wishes.
Intricate patterns spread across the dark leather cover.
At the same time, a system window appeared before him.
Ding!
[Choose your wish.]
The third option allowed the player to learn one of three rare skills.
However—
All three were traps.
Choosing any of them inflicted a curse on the player.
[Curse of Greed (S)]
The price paid by those who desire more than they deserve.
During combat, Health and Mana continuously decrease.
‘What kind of insane debuff is this?’
Of course, Ian ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) had once equipped the curse and cleared content with it purely for fun.
It was technically survivable.
But that had been back when his real life wasn’t on the line.
‘Option four.’
Now, he had no choice but to select the correct answer.
‘...Though how exactly do I choose it?’
Since there was no actual interface to touch, Ian simply spoke aloud to the book.
“Stop the sandstorm surrounding the village.”
“...?”
Both companions stared at him in confusion.
The sandstorm itself was the village’s curse.
The game had never explained who created it.
‘Maybe they added the explanation in a later update.’
Who knew how much lore the developers had expanded alongside the new character releases.
Whether he had used the correct trigger phrase or not—
The Book of Wishes slowly opened its tightly sealed “mouth.”
Its pages fluttered violently as the book spread open. Brilliant light poured out from within.
Meanwhile, Keith remained utterly bewildered.
Why was Ian suddenly wishing for the sandstorm to disappear?
Like any confused human being, Keith instinctively sought reassurance from the nearest bystander.
He turned toward the elf, expecting to see the same puzzled expression.
Instead—
‘...’
The elf was smiling.
No—
His face was almost ecstatic.
His eyes gleamed with feverish fascination, as though he were witnessing the unveiling of some priceless treasure.
—
Back in Oasis Village, the chief awoke.
A damp, foul-smelling floor pressed against his cheek. He and the village’s strongest men had all been tied up inside his daughter’s room.
“Wake up! Everyone, wake up!”
“Ugh...”
One by one, the men slowly regained consciousness.
Still groggy from whatever they had been drugged with, some tried to move too quickly and ended up knocking heads against each other. Someone nearly gagged.
“What... where are we?”
The harsh midday sunlight streaming through the windows revealed their miserable state clearly enough.
They had been bound together in pairs and dumped across the floor.
The chief’s beard had hardened stiffly with dried porridge from before he lost consciousness, ruining the sharp dignity he normally carried.
But porridge couldn’t dull his mind.
“Any dead? Anyone injured? Check the person next to you.” fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
“No, Chief. Everyone’s alive.”
“We were attacked by an elf. A spirit master.”
The chief spoke calmly.
“A spirit master?”
“I thought those only existed in stories...”
A man inhaled sharply as the realization struck him.
They could have died.
But the chief was already thinking further ahead.
“They had every opportunity to harm us.” His voice darkened. “Instead, they merely drugged us and left us here untouched.”
His expression hardened.
“Which means we need to confirm the villagers are safe.”
The others weren’t as sharp as the chief, but even they could hear the ominous implication in his voice.
“Don’t tell me...”
“You think they attacked the villagers instead? There are only old people left in the village!”
The outsiders had all seemed dangerous from the start.
“The villagers know nothing! They’re innocent!”
Someone suddenly froze.
“...And Lily?”
Silence fell instantly.
The chief’s mouth tightened into a hard line.
“Find something sharp. A knife, a nail—anything!”
The men desperately searched the room for anything capable of cutting the ropes. The bindings had been pulled painfully tight, refusing to loosen no matter how much they struggled.
By the time they finally freed themselves, everyone was drenched in sweat.
Not merely from exertion.
“Lily!”
“Lily, where are you?!”
“Oh—Mother!”
One of the middle-aged men, rushing outside toward the village well, spotted his elderly mother.
“Good heavens, look at you,” she scolded. “Drank all night with the youngsters again?”
“No, that’s not— Mother, are the villagers safe? What about the outsiders?”
“The outsiders? They left at dawn.”
“...!”
Relief briefly washed over him—
But there was no time to relax.
“We need to check every house! See if anyone’s hurt—if anything was stolen—”
“What’s going on?” the old woman asked anxiously. “Did those outsiders cause trouble again?”
Panic quickly spread through the village.
Fortunately, nobody was dead.
Nobody was injured.
Nothing had been stolen.
Every home had remained peaceful through the night.
Except the chief’s.
“Lily!”
No matter how loudly they called for her, Lily never appeared.
The chief ground his teeth together.
His daughter had always been frail. Unlike the other children her age, she had never been made to do chores, never sent outside unnecessarily.
The mere thought of what might have happened to her made his blood run cold.
“Where did the outsiders go?”
He tightened his grip on the wooden pole in his hands.
“To the tower...”
One of the women answered shakily.
Tears brimmed in her eyes.
If only she had sensed something was wrong and stopped them—
Even knowing it would have been impossible, guilt still consumed her.
Children were precious in this village.
Without needing to be told, the villagers armed themselves with whatever they could find.
And together, they headed for the tower.
