Chapter 19: A-Rank Water Spirit

It was still morning, but Meng Linna’s day as an adventurer was already over.

No teammates, no suitable jobs.

Yanan wasn’t kind to supports.

Luckily, she had some money now.

Enough to cover short-term expenses without taking jobs.

After a gloomy plate of classic cafeteria fried noodles, Meng Linna borrowed the guild’s alchemy workshop from Miao Miao Niya.

It was an Adventurer’s Guild, sure.

But as a state-managed organization, it had facilities like a hospital.

The alchemy workshop was mostly used for making mundane drugs like cold medicine with magical aid.

There was a risk of exposing her recipe.

But Meng Linna opted to use it briefly.

Buying a proper alchemy cauldron was another big expense.

“Let’s see… water, nettle, marigold…”

With everyone busy, no one watched her.

She followed the recipe, mixing the pre-bought ingredients.

Half an hour later, she returned to her dorm with a bottle of Marigold Potion.

But now she faced a problem.

Making it wasn’t hard.

The ingredients were affordable.

The issue was, how to test its effects?

She couldn’t just cut her wrist and drink it.

Before human testing, she needed to try it on animals.

Decision made, she grabbed her gear and headed out.

She wanted to catch a rat for a clinical trial.

But thanks to Miao Miao Niya’s dog, the guild’s rats were gone.

So she decided to hunt a monster instead.

Like the Horned Rabbits they often ate.

Monsters didn’t spawn in the city.

She’d have to go to the wild.

As a reincarnator, Meng Linna knew of a recently appeared ruin.

It hadn’t been long since it spawned.

Likely, no one else knew.

If not for needing a monster to test, she might not have recalled it.

Back then, the dean sent monks to support the ruin, giving her a few days off.

But that was long ago.

The ruin had an A-rank monster guarding it.

Hunting weak D-rank monsters on the outskirts should avoid disturbing it.

A fresh ruin was risky.

But it didn’t require a guild entry fee.

If done right, she could hunt monsters for extra cash.

Reporting the new ruin might even earn a reward.

With money in mind, she packed her bag and set off.

***

She knew a ruin would appear here.

But she’d never been herself.

She wasn’t clear on the details.

By the time she realized, she was deep inside.

Strange.

It was a brand-new ruin.

Why had she walked so far without trouble?

Not a single monster on the way?

The moss-covered stone walls made her uneasy.

The ruin’s theme seemed to be water.

The deeper she went, the more water-soaked it looked.

Her current spot felt particularly ominous.

Was she near the boss room?

Steeling herself, she peered ahead.

Good news and bad news.

Bad news: it was the boss room.

The A-rank monster had noticed her peeking.

Good news: Na Naya was fighting the boss.

No idea why Na Naya was here.

But now wasn’t the time to wonder.

Meng Linna had to choose.

Help out?

Na Naya was a C-rank warrior.

Soloing an A-rank monster two ranks above was near impossible.

But as a D-rank support, Meng Linna’s help was limited.

Even if they won, Na Naya would get suspicious.

Or run?

Na Naya dared to take on the boss alone.

She must have a plan.

With her system, an A-rank monster was probably fine.

Better to escape and avoid explaining herself.

Meng Linna hesitated.

Why was she so scared of Na Naya misunderstanding her?

In that brief moment, the battle shifted.

The A-rank Water Spirit, previously suppressed, let out a roar.

A torrent blast knocked Na Naya down.

She passed out.

Having expelled its core water, the Water Spirit weakened.

But it was still confident it could take Meng Linna.

After all, she was just a D-rank weakling.

Seeing Na Naya down, Meng Linna’s heart sank.

‘You were so confident fighting this thing, and you got one-shot?’

No choice now.

The Water Spirit was faster than her legs.

She had to fight alone.

“Hiss!”

Noticing Meng Linna’s defiance, the Water Spirit turned into a snake.

It flicked its tongue, trying to scare her.

“Really looking down on me, huh.”

Meng Linna caught its intent.

She wasn’t provoked.

Honestly, fighting a full-strength Water Spirit would be tough.

She was weak.

But this one wasn’t at full strength.

Even as a D-rank warrior, as a reincarnated bishop, she knew high-level attack spells.

Some could handle a weakened Water Spirit just fine.

As it closed in, Meng Linna knew it was time.

“Thunder Pillar!”

Thanks to leading worship daily in her past life, she chanted the spell’s prayer in under five seconds.

Her holy seal glowed brightly.

A massive bolt of lightning appeared from nowhere.

It struck the Water Spirit dead-on.