Odyssey of the Blind God
Chapter 26 How Is He?

Melvin was sure that the sudden change in Nial's entire behavior had something to do with his awakening as an Original.

However, at the same time, it was not like an emotion of his had been sealed before.

As such, Nial was not one of the unique Originals who could become stronger by feeling a specific emotion.

Rather, Nial's personality, and attitude had changed a little bit, which in return, changed his behavior, and even mindset.

Nevertheless, Melvin couldn't complain because this new version of his friend was much better than the old, easily frightened Nial.

He used to behave as if he was optimistic and put on a mask of happiness to hide his true feelings, just to make his parents worry less about him.

Unfortunately, they could see right through his pretense.

In the end, the new Nial was much better, and someone Melvin could respect a lot, even if they hadn't been best friends.

Being blind, yet still being able to fight properly, or even better than some newly awakening Originals was not easy, but Nial seemed to work hard to make that possible.

It was just for his sister's sake, but that was more than enough in Melvin's opinion.

In the future, his friend would have tended to Sabrina's illness, and only then Nial's first trial to replace more about himself and assess his strengths and weaknesses would start.

However, for now, Melvin was glad that Nial was not restless or anything like that, and they could leave the Melind dungeon without any more issues.

There were a few beasts that attacked them every now and then but Nial was determined to fight them, even though his hearing sense was still a bit weak.

This had astonished Melvin, yet, after his friend explained to him that he wanted to train his mana perception in that way, Melvin simply accepted it.

Once they reached inside the forest, Nial was able to make use of his mana perception much better than before.

Nina's healing serum had helped him overcome his exhaustion to a large degree and now he was feeling completely fit and confident of fighting everyone without any issues.

In the beginning, he thought that the [Shockwave Barrage] ability was extremely strong, which made him want to bind the ability for a fraction of a second.

However, this random thought had only popped up in his head in a moment of greed and jealousy and not something he would ever do as long as he could think properly.

Right now, he had many other things to pay attention to, and the [Shockwave Barrage] ability was definitely not suitable for him, not in his current strength.

At least, it didn't increase his combat prowess to an extent that allowed him to make up for the money he could procure by selling the ability crystal.

Nial knew that he had yet to learn how to control mana properly, including the [Mana Perception(Poorest)] ability, while his combat experience was severely lacking, as well as his capabilities to fight overall needed improvement.

He required proper training, but without anyone's help or guidance this was extremely difficult.

As such, he hoped that Melvin would come back to their house in the following days so that they could enter the Melind dungeon.

Other than that, sparring with Melvin would probably help him even more than doing the same with his father. Owing to his father's connections and wealth, Melvin had attended special training conducted by extremely powerful war veterans.

Meanwhile, Nial knew that his father was not exactly known for his high combat prowess. To be precise, Miles' combat talent was even below his mana core's limit which was already below average!

Because of that, Melvin was his best chance to be trained by someone knowledgeable enough as he hardly had any money to hire an instructor.

Sparring and clearing the dungeon with Melvin would help him hit two birds with a stone.

It would increase his combat awareness while simultaneously allowing him to procure a huge fortune every single day too!

In a few hours, they had procured a total of 52 origin crystals and a rare ability crystal, after all.

This was exceptional, and not something Nial would be able to retrieve from the dungeon, without paying a hefty fee, but Melvin's social status made it possible!

While Nial had already been astonished about the amount of origin crystals they had amassed, the ability crystal at the low quality was even better.

The origin crystals would fetch them a fortune of more than 1500$, while the single ability crystal was worth tens of times that fortune.

His eyes glinted with greed and excitement as he thought of the wealth they had collected.

As such, there was no way that Nial could be frustrated with himself, but that was exactly what was going on.

They would have died against the Sekyr Sound Centipede if the female Instructor hadn't rescued them!

To be precise, she had just protected her students, and nothing else.

In the end, it was only because she was thankful for his warning that they had gotten their hands on the ability crystal.

As such, it was luck, and Nial didn't think that they deserved the ability crystal.

However, right now, he had no other choice but to take it. His sister was in dire need of money so he couldn't afford to be righteous.

Time passed slowly, and Nial didn't even notice that they had already left the dungeon and were on their way back to the shelter.

Both him and Melvin were subjected to weird gazes of the other people who wanted to enter the dungeon.

And there was a good reason for them to be stared at.

Their clothes were drenched in blood and dirt, while a trail of dried blood was visible on the side of his face that went down his ear and neck, disappearing beneath his shirt.

As such, Nial looked as if he had been severely injured while massacring his way through a horde of beasts, only to be somehow fine at the same time.

Meanwhile, Melvin's clothes were completely clean, which created a stark contrast between Nial and Melvin's appearance.

There were many young men and women standing in the queue while waiting for their turn to enter the dungeon.

Several of them belonged to families that worked for the government and nobody could grasp what exactly had happened to Nial and Melvin to look like that.

Nial was evidently blind, but his weapon painted a different picture making him look like he was filthy rich, misleading others into believing that he was just another spoiled brat though disabled.

Thus, seeing two rich youths that seemed to have awoken their origin extremely late, the others thought that it was forcefully awoken.

All of this created misunderstanding within the minds of the people that stared at them, but neither Melvin, who saw this, nor Nial, who felt their stares, cared about them.

Melvin called a shuttle before handing him a wet and a dry towel that had been stored in his spatial ring.

"At least clean your face, otherwise Maline will kill you for having been injured, and me immediately afterward…"

Imagining his mother's reaction upon returning home, Nial immediately grabbed the towels and began to rub his face thoroughly.

Afterward, the shuttle arrived and they entered it to drive back home.

Only 20 minutes passed before they arrived home, and when Nial left the shuttle he felt a chilly wind brushing into his hair.

Through this he realized that they were a lot late to return than they had hoped.

Dread filled his heart at the thought of his mother's face scrunching in worry and anger and thus Nial slowly tiptoed through the front door.

But, it proved to be futile as shortly after he heard the hurried footsteps of his mother and father rushing towards him.

They appeared in front of them a moment later and were staring at Nial and Melvin.

Initially, they had wanted to say something, but looking at the shocking difference in Nial and Melvin's appearance, they were taken aback.

To say that they were utterly shocked would be an understatement and Nial could feel the intense gaze of his parents upon him.

Melvin immediately figured out what was going on, which caused him to explain the entire situation in a matter of mere seconds.

"Don't misunderstand the situation!! I didn't use Nial as bait or something like that!! Let me explain everything

…

..

So to put it simply, I acted as an archer and hunted all the beasts while Nial entered close combat!"

Wiping off the sweat on his forehead, Melvin finished his retelling of their first hunt while he felt the stare of Nial's parents weighing him down.

And if he were to be honest, the stare of angered and worried parents was the worst.

It made him feel even more pressure than the hellish combat training he had undergone. Thus, he quieted down the moment he finished speaking.

Fortunately, Maline didn't say a word, and she simply stared at Nial, who felt her gaze lingering on him. It was uncomfortable, but he forced himself to smile lightly as he heard his father's voice.

"OK, but how can there be such a large amount of blood all over him? And what's this green fluid, weren't you guys inside the Melind dungeon?"

After hearing this, Melvin understood that he couldn't hide the incident that had occurred at the end of their hunt, but fortunately, Nial's parents listened to him rather quietly.

As such, he explained the situation in a detailed manner, while Nial was enduring his mother's gaze that grew more burdensome the more time passed.

Yet, instead of scolding him for his recklessness, she just sighed deeply, relieved that nothing had happened to the two of them before she said in a resigned voice.

"Alright, as long as you two are fine, there is nothing I can complain about."

A moment later, she mumbled to herself as her shoulders drooped a bit, "..even if I would like to…"

Afterward, Maline regained her composure, and tried to hide her worry as she ordered her son,

"Nial, go take a shower, you smell like a trash can!"

This sudden change in their topic confused Nial, but escaping his mother was a welcome move. As such, he exited the living room quickly, leaving behind Melvin, who stared at him with a betrayed expression.

Just a moment later, Maline stared at Melvin with a serious expression.

"I want you to be honest with us! How dangerous is it to let Nial enter a dungeon independently? Is he just risking his life trying to support his family financially?

Do you think he can really survive without relying on anyone other than himself?"

Melvin had expected a similar question because he was worried about the same thing as Maline. It was evident that someone with a problem like Nial faced more issues in a dungeon that required the entrant to bet on his skills and his life every single time he stepped inside, let alone kill beasts.

And as Nial's friend, and his best friend, it was obvious that he didn't want Nial to sacrifice his life needlessly.

As such, he tried to recall the events of the last few hours in the finest detail, before thinking about a proper answer. Yet, what he recalled was one fight after another, and the subtle changes in Nial's fighting style.

This caused Melvin's eyes to widen because he hadn't realized something very important beforehand- Nial had never received any professional combat training, let alone tips on how to fight any kind of living being properly!

'How...did I not notice that?!' Melvin thought, shocked as realization struck him deep.

'Did I miss something, or is it truly as frightening as I think?'