Investing in My Harem in the Apocalypse Makes Me Stronger
Chapter 14: Opening the Cyan Scroll and Blue Orb

Chapter 14: Opening the Cyan Scroll and Blue Orb

Cain stopped near an empty examination room.

Elara stood in front of him, still holding her old fencing sword.

"What did you want to talk about?"

Cain opened his Inventory.

Then, a Cyan Scroll appeared in his right hand and a Blue Orb appeared in the other.

He held both items toward her.

"Take them."

Elara looked at the items.

Her eyes immediately moved toward the Blue Orb.

She had already seen Cain obtain a Green Orb from the Hardened Zombie.

The Green Orb had given Cain his Uncommon-rank Blacksteel Longsword.

A Blue Orb was clearly more valuable.

"What are they?" Elara asked.

"Check them."

Elara touched the Blue Orb first and widened her eyes when she saw the description.

[Blue Orb: Contains one random Rare-rank item.]

She then focused on the Cyan Scroll.

[Cyan Scroll]

[Contains one random Skill or Talent compatible with the user.]

Elara froze as she knew that talent and skill were something people awakened naturally when the apocalypse descended.

Yet the scroll in front of her could grant one.

Elara looked at Cain and pushed the items, "You should use these."

"They’re for you." Cain shook his head.

"But you’re the one who obtained them."

"So?"

"You’re the strongest person in our group. So, you’ll be able to use them better than I can."

Cain stared at her.

He had expected her to accept them immediately, but she was trying to return them instead.

Cain’s eyebrow twitched.

"Silly girl." Cain placed one hand on top of her head and gently patted her hair.

"I’m already strong enough that I don’t need them."

Elara looked up at him.

Cain continued, "You’re still weak."

Her expression changed.

"Weak?"

"Yes."

Cain spoke without hesitation.

"You’re so weak that I need to worry whenever you fight something strong."

Elara’s lips pressed together.

Cain’s hand remained on her head.

"If I keep looking in your direction during a battle because I’m afraid something might happen to you, you’ll only distract me."

The irritation in Elara’s eyes gradually faded. Her fingers tightened around the Cyan Scroll.

Cain’s words were harsh.

However, she understood what he meant as he wanted her to become strong enough to protect herself.

Cain had obtained those items after risking his life against mutated zombies far above his Level.

He could have used them to become even stronger.

Instead, he had kept both for her.

Warmth spread through Elara’s chest. She lowered her gaze to hide the expression on her face.

Cain continued patting her head.

Inside his mind, his thoughts were far less gentle.

’Just accept them already.’

He looked at the Cyan Scroll.

’Quickly use them and give me whatever reward the System has prepared.’

Cain was truly curious about the investment return.

He was not lying when he said that Elara needed the items more than he did.

She was already strong, but Cain needed someone dependable beside him.

He planned to leave the university as soon as they gathered enough supplies and people.

His hometown was several cities away and he had no idea of his parents’ situation.

More importantly, he did not know what had happened to his little sister.

Thinking about her waiting for someone to save her made his chest tighten.

Elara’s home was near his house. They had been neighbors for years and had known each other since junior high school.

Ron also lived in the same area.

Cain was certain that the two of them would want to return home as badly as he did.

That was why Elara and Ron were the people he cared about most inside the university.

Cain would save others when possible.

He would gather useful fighters and protect those who traveled with him.

However, his ultimate goal was not to remain on campus.

The distance to their hometown was far.

They would need to pass through several cities filled with zombies and mutated creatures.

Cain was not confident enough to make that journey with only Ron and Elara since the unknown dangers were the most dangerous thing in his opinion as he didn’t know what kind of strong zombies or mutated creatures awaited him outside the university.

They needed more companions.

They also needed vehicles and resources.

Gathering survivors at the university served more than one purpose. Cain wanted people capable of traveling with him when he finally left.

The larger the group became, the more difficult it would be to manage. Yet, a reliable group would still increase their chances of reaching home alive.

Elara finally raised her head.

"Okay."

Cain’s hand stopped moving.

She looked directly at him. "I’ll accept them."

Cain almost smiled widely.

Elara continued, "I’ll become much stronger so that I can help you."

Her expression softened.

"I’ll repay you soon."

"Can’t wait for it." Cain nodded.

Elara held the Blue Orb in her right palm, then crushed it.

Blue light spread around her fingers.

The broken orb disappeared, and a sword appeared in her hand.

It was slightly shorter than Cain’s Blacksteel Longsword.

The blade was narrow and well suited for thrusting, but unlike her fencing sword, it possessed sharpened edges that could be used for slashing.

Pale blue patterns covered the metal. A cold aura spread from the sword, lowering the temperature around them.

Cain raised an eyebrow.

’Her luck is good.’

The weapon clearly possessed an Ice-related effect.

"Is it good?" Cain asked.

Elara inspected the weapon, then a smile appeared on her face.

"Yeah." She nodded, then handed the sword to him as she continued, "See for yourself."

Cain accepted it.

The moment his fingers touched the handle, the item description appeared.

[Frostveil Sword (Rare-rank)]

[Strength +5]

[Agility +15]

[A Rare-rank sword forged using Froststeel. The weapon greatly increases the power of Ice-attributed Skills and improves the stability of Ice Mana flowing through the blade.]

Cain’s eyebrows rose.

The Frostveil Sword increased more stats than his Windstep Boots.

It also improved Ice Skills, making it perfectly suited for Elara.

Cain compared the weapon with his boots.

Both were Rare-rank items.

However, their effects were clearly not equal.

’Is there a large difference in quality within the same rank?’

Cain remembered the enemies that had dropped them.

The Windstep Boots came from the Level 17 Mutated Zombie.

The Blue Orb containing this sword had dropped from the Level 24 Blade Mantis Zombie.

’Or does the strength of the creature affect the item inside the orb?’

Cain did not know enough to reach a conclusion.

He decided to think about it later.

"It’s a good sword."

Cain returned the Frostveil Sword. "Use it well."

Elara received it carefully.

"Thank you."

She attached the sheath to her waist before turning her attention toward the Cyan Scroll.

Cain crossed his arms.

This was the item he was most curious about.

Elara held the scroll with both hands and opened it.

Faint cyan light escaped from the paper. The scroll began disappearing from the edges, turning into small particles of light.

Within seconds, nothing remained.

A blue screen appeared in front of Elara.

[You have obtained Fracture Sight (??? - Rank).]