So I Became a Witch and Started Doing Daily Quests

Chapter 154: Points Harvest

The Marsh Arrow Frog was a low-tier magical beast known for its rapid reproduction rate.

Though not particularly powerful, it was extremely adept at hiding and escaping.

Even under Janna’s dual detection spells, [Plant Vision] and [Eagle Eye Spell], it remained difficult to locate the Marsh Arrow Frogs. However, the arrival of Maro Heigel broke Janna’s impasse and greatly improved their hunting efficiency.

Throughout the harvesting process, Maro Heigel acted entirely like a subordinate who followed Janna’s lead.

Not only did he refrain from initiating the hunts, but he also voluntarily handed over the Marsh Arrow Frog tongues he "occasionally" managed to harvest—

As though he truly considered himself nothing more than a mere "guide tool," devoid of desire or expectation—

However, Janna, who was already accustomed to all sorts of human dealings, clearly understood the true purpose behind his actions.

After all, human behavior was driven by motives.

Maro Heigel’s actions were simply a matter of cost-effectiveness.

One Marsh Arrow Frog tongue was worth one point, while a student nameplate was worth ten academic credits. But for every additional hour spent within the Marsh Secret Realm, fifty academic credits could be earned.

According to Maro Heigel, the Marsh Secret Realm was vast. Thus, even though over three hundred apprentices were participating in this trial, the chances of encountering each other were generally low.

To address this, Blackbone Grove Academy had set up an enormous "Curse Ritual" within the Marsh Secret Realm.

The structure of this "Curse Ritual" formed a massive circle that covered the entire Marsh Secret Realm.

The strength of the curse radiated outward from the center of the circle, growing stronger with distance from the center.

Moreover, the power of the "Curse Ritual" would increase every hour, starting from the outer ring and intensifying inward.

This meant that as the trial progressed, all areas except the center would eventually be enveloped by powerful curses such as [Disease Curse], [Serious Injury Curse], and even [Bloodline Contamination].

At its peak, the curse could kill any Second Tier Wizard Apprentice in just thirty seconds.

Most apprentices were eliminated during this "death thirty seconds" window when they panicked and invoked the exit incantation, thus being forced to leave the realm.

Therefore, in the later stages of the trial, all apprentices had no choice but to sprint toward the inner circle.

During this time, apprentices already affected by the curse could only suppress its effects by seeking out a type of swamp fruit called "Rotfruit."

Although the "Rotfruit" couldn’t completely purge the curse, it significantly alleviated its effects.

It was during his gathering of "Rotfruit" that Maro Heigel had been targeted by three other Blackbone Grove apprentices and pursued relentlessly...

In essence, Maro Heigel’s current deference to Janna stemmed from his decision to sacrifice the gains from Marsh Arrow Frogs in exchange for clinging to her and staying longer within the realm.

"Miss Janna, please accept these. Not just these, but I will continue to assist you with all my effort in hunting more Marsh Arrow Frogs—I won’t take a single point for myself—"

"Mr. Heigel, then what’s your condition for this exchange?"

After listening to Maro Heigel’s long explanation, Janna decided to cut to the chase, directly pointing out the key detail he had avoided.

"I hope... Miss Janna could purify the curse on me. Just once will be enough..."

After much buildup, Maro Heigel finally voiced what had been weighing on his heart.

And seeing how pale he had become from the curse, Janna only thought for a moment before nodding in agreement.

Buzz—

With Janna’s permission, a milky-white purifying light shot out from the white jade on the forehead of the Celestial Finch.

As the purifying light continued to shine, Maro Heigel began to cough violently, expelling blood-tinged tissue fragments from his mouth.

"Th-thank you, Miss Janna."

Thanks to Maro Heigel’s guidance, Janna not only hunted Marsh Arrow Frogs efficiently but also steadily moved toward the center. Because of this, the purifications—originally needed every half hour—had already been stretched to once per hour.

After some rest, the Celestial Finch’s magic power recovery even surpassed its consumption rate.

Even after purifying Maro Heigel now, there was no risk of magical depletion.

The light gradually faded.

As the Celestial Finch completed the curse purification, Maro Heigel’s complexion finally returned to normal.

"Mr. Heigel, it’s about time. Shall we proceed?"

"Of course! Let me check... the next closest water body should be in this direction."

Moonset and sunrise marked the break of dawn.

After a full night of hunting, Janna had accumulated a total of three hundred and seventy-six Marsh Arrow Frog tongues.

During this time, the two also encountered an apprentice from Mist Tower attempting an ambush from the shadows.

Unexpectedly, the predator became the prey.

The Mist Tower apprentice, whose movements had long been observed by the Hundred-Eyed Specter, fell into a trap set with a Mirror Illusion and was counter-killed by Janna in the form of an Ogre Flower. This marked the fifth nameplate she claimed during the Secret Realm trial.

"Miss Janna, after we travel a bit further, we should reach the center of the Marsh Secret Realm."

Piercing through layers of fog and guided by [Plant Vision], Janna could indeed sense that the inner ring was noticeably more active than the outer edges, with numerous silhouettes darting through the bushes.

"Hold on—one thousand meters ahead, I sense a very strong poison-attribute magical fluctuation. It seems... to be Mist Tower apprentices."

Mist Tower?

Hearing Janna’s observation and knowing her magic granted perceptive vision, Maro Heigel thought for a moment before concluding:

"Logically, everyone should be rushing to the central area before the next curse wave. This place will soon be corrupted—unless they’re waiting for something."

At that, Janna nodded.

"If they were simply planning to ambush passersby, they wouldn’t have ignored all the people who already went by. So—"

The two exchanged a knowing glance, and Maro Heigel quickly grasped her meaning.

"So, what they’re guarding now must be the Rotfruit—but since it hasn’t ripened yet, those Mist Tower apprentices have no choice but to stay and wait for the fruit to mature."

As Janna’s voice grew softer, a meaningful smile slowly appeared at the corner of her lips.

"If those Rotfruits were destroyed, wouldn’t that mean a whole group of Mist Tower apprentices would be forced to withdraw from the realm?"