Chapter 54: The Moth Queen’s Demise and A-Rank Assessment Changes

Hilvyn observed the Moth Queen from a distance.

The moment the Moth Queen suddenly “transformed” into Elara.

She reacted decisively, immediately channeling all her strength to extend the ice spikes of the cage.

Simultaneously, she diverted a portion of her focus to summon a gust of wind, sweeping away the poisonous powder the Corrosive Wind Moth Queen had already scattered.

The instant Elara’s vision appeared above the treetop, she immediately held her breath.

Adjusting her posture, she plummeted to the ground, landing safely.

Only after the gust of wind had passed did she finally begin to breathe.

This “Spatial Displacement” had consumed fifty percent of her magic.

However, having experienced the displacement with Hilvyn before, she quickly recovered from this fifty percent expenditure.

The Moth Queen itself possessed excellent magic resistance; had they used “Shadow Silk Bind,” it would have easily broken free.

But for ice and earth-type cages, which were half magic and half physical, Elara was certain that the moth’s body structure would prevent it from breaking through the reinforced ice spike cage.

The cage continued its relentless spiking for three minutes, yet the magic dispersion within had not ceased.

Elara stood beside Hilvyn.

“Are you tired?”

“Not really,” Hilvyn shook her head. “It’s still not dead?”

Elara sensed it once more, then also shook her head.

“Not yet.”

“So difficult to kill?”

Hilvyn silently increased the cage’s power.

Another three minutes passed, and the magic dispersion abruptly stopped with a ‘snap.’

“It’s dead now.”

Upon opening the cage, the Moth Queen’s wings were shattered beyond recognition.

Its entire body was riddled with blood holes of varying sizes, presenting a particularly gruesome sight.

Elara stepped forward to collect the materials.

“Let’s go. We’re heading back.”

“It’s finally over…” Hilvyn couldn’t bear to stay there a moment longer.

The two quickly returned to the city gates.

Upon entering, personnel from the Wind Temple helped them eliminate most of the putrid stench.

****

At the Adventurers’ Guild.

Elara submitted their spoils.

“You two were truly swift,” Serene praised, tallying the items.

‘How could we not be fast?’

Elara and Hilvyn thought simultaneously, scoffing inwardly.

‘Who would willingly linger in that stench if not for the reward?’

“One Corrosive Wind Moth Queen, four B-rank monsters, nine C-rank monsters…”

Serene finished counting and collected the materials.

“The total reward is 388 gold and 68 silver.”

This amount also included the other monsters they had defeated.

Elara inwardly sighed, ‘The reward is quite generous.’

Part of it was due to it being an A-rank commission, but another reason was that corruption-related commissions were jointly issued by the Count’s faction and the Guild.

To motivate adventurers, the commission fees for these tasks were slightly higher than other commissions of the same rank.

“Also, regarding Bai Zhi’s A-rank assessment, have you two made any arrangements?”

Elara and Hilvyn exchanged glances.

They had both completely forgotten about it.

After all, their team was already A-rank, so an individual member’s rank had very little impact.

However, reaching A-rank would definitely bring some corresponding benefits.

Given Hilvyn’s strength, passing the assessment would naturally be effortless.

“Oh, right,” Serene suddenly remembered something. “The content for the A-rank assessment changed a while ago.”

“Changed?” Elara was slightly surprised.

Originally, the A-rank assessment directly tested an adventurer’s talent. If one’s talent was poor, their affinity would also be low, naturally lacking the ability to cast high-tier magic. Thus, an adventurer with poor talent couldn’t even reach the A-rank threshold.

Any change now could only be a downward compatibility adjustment.

“Yes,” Serene nodded. “News from the Wind’s Breath Harbor headquarters stated that the A-rank assessment would be changed to a strength assessment and a comprehensive assessment.”

Serene then thoroughly explained the detailed regulations to them.

In simple terms, adventurers could choose either the strength assessment or the comprehensive assessment as their promotion test.

First, a prerequisite for both assessments was that the adventurer must have completed a sufficient number of corresponding-rank commissions.

The strength assessment was the original A-rank assessment content, designed for those with inherently high talent.

The newly introduced comprehensive assessment, however, would be divided into an interview-based examination and a general comprehensive strength assessment, typically evaluating the proficiency in using mid-tier magic.

However, adventurers who passed the comprehensive assessment would not receive many of the privileges of a normal A-rank; they belonged to a special tier, which could be described as ‘A-‘.

Still, it was much better than B-rank. According to Serene, many veteran B-rank adventurers had gone for this assessment in the past two days.

“What do you think?”

Elara looked at Hilvyn, believing this decision should be hers alone.

“Then let’s get it done quickly.”

“Alright,” Elara agreed, then turned to Serene. “Serene, let’s schedule it for tomorrow then.”

“Tomorrow is already fully booked.” Serene flipped through the A-rank assessment schedule, a hint of surprise in her voice. “It’s actually booked out for half a month from now.”

‘Huh?’

Elara was dumbfounded. When had Wind’s Whisper City’s B-rank adventurers become so numerous?

“Are there really that many people?” Hilvyn inquired.

“Normally, there wouldn’t be this many. It’s because a lot of adventurers came during the dungeon period.

After they finished exploring the dungeon, they learned about the assessment revision and immediately applied in Wind’s Whisper City.”

After hearing Serene’s explanation, it seemed perfectly reasonable.

“But surely Bai Zhi will be taking the strength assessment, right?”

Elara and Hilvyn both nodded in unison.

“Adventurers taking the strength assessment can cut in line. Since we’ve already notified the adventurers scheduled for tomorrow, we can only slot her in the day after tomorrow.”

“That works. The day after tomorrow it is.”

There was no real difference between the day after tomorrow and tomorrow. Even if it were scheduled half a month later, Elara could accept it, as the impact was truly minimal.

“Thanks, Serene,” Hilvyn said with a smile, expressing her gratitude.

“It’s my duty,” Serene replied courteously.

The two left the guild as dusk began to settle.

A light, drizzling rain began to fall from the sky.

“The weather was perfectly fine today; why is it raining?”

“Who knows.”

Elara responded, and the two hurried into the cafeteria, shielding themselves from the rain.

Fortunately, the cafeteria, the guild, and their home were all quite close.

Even if the rain intensified, there was no need to rush.

“What do you want to eat today?”

“Let me think…” Hilvyn stared at the menu board on the wall for a long time.

“Look at this one,” Elara pushed a menu in front of Hilvyn.

“Oh, this looks much easier, thank you, Big Sister.”

“Then I’ll have…” Hilvyn flipped a few pages. “Two servings of toast…”

In the end, she still ordered toast.

“I’m not eating toast,” Elara quickly refused.

She was utterly sick of it.

To her surprise, Hilvyn gave an embarrassed smile. “Actually, I want two servings for myself.”

So, she hadn’t even considered Elara in the first place.

Elara couldn’t help but laugh, exasperated.

After placing their order, the food was served without much delay.

Hilvyn ate toast with smoked sausage and bean soup, while Elara had oatmeal with pan-fried wind pigeon eggs and roasted mushrooms.

“Big Sister, why aren’t you eating any meat?”

Hilvyn noticed there was no meat in front of Elara and gave her more than half of her sausage.

“Eating a little less won’t hurt.”

Elara knew that people here didn’t have concepts like fats and carbohydrates as they did on Earth, so she didn’t explain it to Hilvyn.

She cut another half and pushed the rest back.

“This is enough for me.”

“Alright then.”

After dinner, the rain intensified.

Hilvyn conjured a layer of ice shield, and the two sheltered inside it on their way home, but midway, the ice shield shattered.

They got drenched on the way home…

Being soaked meant they needed to take a shower quickly.

“You first, or me?” Elara asked casually.

Hilvyn tilted her head curiously:

“Didn’t we say together?”

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