I Have a Task Log

On the table was a strange board and a small bookshelf.

The board consisted of four parallel black plates. A base plate supported three others stacked on top, staggered like steps. Its material looked much like the chitinous shell of some insect.

"What is this? Don’t tell me it’s a Magic Scroll?" Colin reached out and picked up the board, a strange sensation washing over him instantly.

He wiggled his fingers; his fingertips were covered in a sticky, slimy liquid.

Dorn said, "That’s a Mind Flayer’s notebook. Their writing is on it. We’ll have to use Magic to decipher it later. Nobody can understand the script of those things."

"Speaking of which, how do you know so much about Mind Flayers? You’re usually just like Kase, too lazy to read a single word."

"Maybe because I’m not an idiot," Dorn retorted. "I’ve mentioned I lived underground for a long time, right? Any subterranean dweller would know about these disgusting, moronic octopus-heads."

Colin asked curiously, "Up in the air just now, were you dueling that thing with Spiritual Energy?"

"Of course. I’m a Soul Blade Master. I’m an expert when it comes to handling these things." After speaking, Dorn pulled out his lock-picking tools and started working on a nearby chest.

Taking advantage of the moment, Colin looked through the small bookshelf in front of him.

The bookshelf held a few grimy books, most with bizarre titles like Imprisoned Countess and Secrets of a Knight and a Noblewoman. It was hard to imagine why these Mind Flayers would collect such things.

Upon closer inspection, however, Colin found three Magic Scrolls.

By now, he was familiar with the standard format of Magic Scrolls and could basically distinguish a scroll’s specific effect.

Upon careful inspection, he saw the three scrolls were for the Tier Four spells: [Acid Ball], [Burning Hand], and [Web].

Colin paid special attention to the [Acid Ball] Magic Scroll.

As far as he knew, this was a Tier Four Group Damage Spell, and its power was quite considerable.

’But I can’t cast Tier Four Magic yet,’ Colin thought. ’Although... if I really push myself, I just might be able to...’

Just then, the nearby chest popped open with a CREAK as Dorn unlocked it.

Colin leaned in to take a look. Inside the chest were four glass jars filled with green liquid, and soaking within them were several pale brains.

Fighting back his revulsion, he asked, "What are these for?"

"They’re for storing memories. You should know that all Mind Flayers revolve around a single, terrifyingly large brain, right? Like bees and their queen. Perhaps that’s why these things are so fond of brains."

Dorn spoke as he moved the jars from the chest to the side, getting slime from the jars all over his hand.

He then pulled open several small drawers at the bottom of the chest.

One of the drawers contained an assortment of coins.

Colin took a closer look. There were octagonal coins engraved with spiderwebs and square coins engraved with mine shafts—these were coins used by the Drow and Gray Dwarves, also known as "black coins."

In addition, there were also some coins from the Surface world.

The other drawer held some scattered Gemstones, which didn’t look to be of high quality.

Colin turned his head and called Ale in from outside.

The expert gave the items a cursory glance before speaking. "Some black coins from the Underdark and currency from Thousand Masts City, plus a few amethysts, garnets, and spinels. All told, it’s worth a little over two hundred and thirty Gold Coins. If you find a knowledgeable collector, you could probably get more for it."

"Let’s pack it up for now, then."

With that said, Colin strode out of the wooden hut.

By this time, Leia and the others had mostly woken up. The group of young nobles was sitting on the ground, gazing around in a daze, their expressions showing they still hadn’t recovered their wits.

Colin and Dorn walked out and silently approached Kase. Colin patted his shoulder, while Dorn patted his forearm.

The Half-Orc asked in a gruff, booming voice, "What are you two doing?"

"Just saying hi to our little bro," Colin said.

Dorn chimed in from the side, "Yeah. You’re all right, aren’t you?"

Once he felt his palms were more or less clean, Colin walked over to Leia and asked, "As for the loot, you all can take one-third of the valuables in the hut and the Mind Flayer’s corpse. Is that acceptable?"

"That won’t be necessary. We’re failures who are lucky to be alive," the Dwarf among them said in a booming voice.

The man was clad in a suit of Full Plate Armor, its Plate Armor Chest Guard engraved with the Divine Emblem of Moradin, the Dwarven god. He looked to be a rather traditional Shield Dwarf, perhaps even a Priest.

Another member of their group, a Halfling in Leather Armor holding a Dagger, chimed in, "You should take everything. Consider it a symbol of our friendship."

"A symbol of our friendship," Colin repeated.

Since they didn’t want any of it, he certainly wasn’t going to insist.

Leia glanced at her companions, then raised her hand. "Can I take a little something as a memento?"

"Take whatever you like," Colin replied.

Having brought no backpacks, the group bundled up the loot, hoisted it onto their backs, and headed for the Surface.

Although no one in the group had any external injuries, everyone was suffering from a slight migraine under the effects of the [Mind Blast].

This kind of mental Damage could be healed with Divine Art, but Orelia’s Divine Art was not currently strong enough to heal everyone.

As they continued on, Colin chatted briefly with the new party of nobles.

The party’s name was "The Grand Bazaar." Like the previous party of traditional nobles, this one was also quite friendly when chatting with them—or rather, their friendliness seemed a bit deliberate.

Colin, however, was more concerned with their recent haul.

Putting aside the valuables, the main prize was Karen Stone Heart’s gear. The Armed Sword, Large Shield, and suit of Full Plate Armor were all Ordinary Level Magic Equipment.

Just as he’d seen before, they only had simple Enchantments like "+1 Damage" and "+1 Defense."

He could give the Armed Sword to Ale for self-defense in critical moments, while the Large Shield could go to Kase, the only one in the entire party who could wield such a thing.

As for the suit of Full Plate Armor, Colin wanted to have Donkexes and his team add dragon bone to it and modify it into a suit of Half-plate Armor for his own use.

To be honest, ever since seeing the illustration in the newspaper, he had wanted to replace the muscle armor he was wearing. He hadn’t realized how gaudy this suit of armor looked until now.

His considerably increased Power also gave him the confidence to do so.

With his current physical conditioning, he shouldn’t have any trouble wearing a normal suit of Half-plate Armor.

Of course, all of this was contingent on not having to turn in the equipment.